


Winter Kebabs

by RascalPink



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: F/F, andshithappens, butlikebitchaf, imaginerichmina, poorness, povertylinemygoodness, saidaisjustsailingherelol, sheain'tbeta, thenlikeChaeyoungwithhersmolnesscomesby
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-17
Updated: 2019-01-24
Packaged: 2019-08-25 02:34:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 29,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16652629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RascalPink/pseuds/RascalPink
Summary: Chaeyoung brings some holiday cheer into Myoui Mina's life.





	1. Chapter 1

Chaeyoung notices the thirty-fourth floor light always turns on at nine, up in that high rise just a mile away from her.

 

It was a Sunday, a few months ago since she first saw that light turn on, and she didn't mind the light much until it turned on at this very day.

 

Christmas Eve.

 

There are many things Chaeyoung concludes at this moment. The person up on that high rise is probably some rich business executive. That executive’s probably alone, haughty and has a penchant for smoking cigars while having some whiskey with his golfing buddies.

 

Yeah, that's what that executive is doing, because working on Christmas Eve when you're on the thirty-fourth floor definitely calls for a change of pace, an intervention per se. 

 

He probably has friends, maybe, but not close. They're probably close enough to see, but not touch, touch closely, touch their heart. They’re just acquaintances. Most likely, they see each other at the office parties that the executive never likes to attend, but gets dragged on to because he has to show up at least once in the year. 

 

Family. This executive definitely does not have a family. If he does, it’s strained or rather, a promise broken, a promise unfulfilled. A son, he probably has, just a guess, a hunch you see, who's hoping his father comes home or comes to his mother’s home. He wants to see his father's face, because it's normal for a kid to see their father on Christmas Eve, having some eggnog, a fireplace beside you, as you listen to Christmas carols from the speakers.

 

Well it doesn't matter now. Because when you're working on Christmas Eve at the thirty fourth floor of a skyscraper in The Big Apple, you probably don't care about all those things. Friends, family - they’re a waste of time. No, you probably are in it for the money, because your job is the only stable and constant thing in your life. It'll never leave until you quit or get fired for some stupid mistake. 

 

It's  safe .

 

Chaeyoung stares at that light, her eyes shining with a hint of sadness, before she turns her attention to the customer in front of her. 

 

Because she's working on a rooftop bar on Christmas Eve.

 

//

 

First name Mina, last name Myoui. Yet her parents still call her Myoui Mina. Screw them and their traditional ways. She doesn't know how many times she’s had to explain that they can't do that here in New York. People would just get confused and look at you weird.

 

And she definitely hates being looked at weird.

 

She ain't weird, far from it. She's normal, she thinks, although her boss Jeongyeon always tells her she isn't. However, Jeongyeon says a lot of things, and she takes whatever that runt says with a grain of salt. At times, that runt says some things that just gets her angry, and she can't ignore it.

 

Like now.

 

“I thought you'd be here.” Jeongyeon leans against the doorframe of her office, holding a black binder full of papers. 

 

“So?” Mina’s tone is accusatory. “Can't a woman like me work?” 

 

She doesn't pay Jeongyeon a glance. Instead, she’s working on a stack of papers that just came in on Friday. She hasn't gotten to them since the merger meetings during the weekend ate up her time. Now’s the perfect time to do them, in silence, in peace, when no one is in the office because they're off gallivanting around in red and green singing about an old man with a giant white beard. This holiday is such a waste of time.

 

Jeongyeon purses her lips, as if disappointed, as if wistful.

 

“It's Christmas Eve and you're working. Why don't you come to the bar? Nayeon misses you.”

 

“Nayeon said I was a bitch. I know what she thinks of me, so you can drop that excuse.” Fourteenth page of the Wendy Case done. Forty-three more to go. 

 

For the first time that night, she gives Jeongyeon a look. Jeongyeon becomes hopeful, but then Mina speaks again and hope is lost.

 

“Is that the Irene deal?” Mina asks, referring to the black binder Jeongyeon is holding.

 

Jeongyeon sighs. Trust Mina to divert the topic to work, as always. 

 

“It is.” Mina rolls over in her chair with her hand out, but Jeongyeon stays still. “But you’re not getting it. Not today.”

 

“Come on!” Mina huffs. “The sooner I get this RV Corporation all sorted out, the sooner I can get started on the iKonic Registry. They're counting on us to get it done!”

 

“The deadline is in three months Mina. We’ll be fine.”

 

“But the-”

 

“I didn't get you this job just to kill yourself with it, Myoui. You may be the CFO, but I'm the CEO and that means you do what I say.”

 

Mina takes a glance at the clock above the door. It's 11:43 at night. 

 

“Why are  you here then? It's almost midnight and you're talking to someone who probably doesn't give a shit about parties and this fucking holiday.”

 

She scans the office floor through the glass panels, before her eyes settle outside to the glitz and glamour and the beauty of the New York City lights. Living here her whole life, she’s never taken notice of all the glitter, but she knows that all that glitters is not gold, because she knows the in-between.

 

Living in the Bronx, she’s seen her fair share of atrocities. From a kidnapping of a young girl to a drive-by on a tiny kid she knew as Little Bobby. Yeah, she knows it, she knows the truth. Because when her mother left her father for another man, a richer man, money is probably what kept them all in that place, lack of money that is.

 

And she's not going back to that place, no, not a chance.

 

She turns to Jeongyeon, looking gaunt and affected, as she remembers her time as a teenager looking at the soaring skyscrapers of Manhattan. Those were simpler times, but they were worse times, and she doesn’t want to remember a single bit of it.

 

Jeongyeon’s reason makes her almost laugh. 

 

Almost.

 

“Because you’re my friend.”

 

God, she hates that word. Friend. It’s such a lie. They’ll all just leave you in the end, as you claw away at their knees, and they kick you in the face, abandoning you in the dust.

 

It’s not hard to say what what she says next.

 

“Well I don't consider you mine. So, fuck off.”

 

Jeongyeon exhales, as if the last straw was just taken. She nods a few times and then she tosses the black binder on Mina’s desk. 

 

“Go fuck yourself Mina. Have fun being alone,” is the last thing Jeongyeon says before she bolts out of the office, probably heading off to some Christmas party with her wife Nayeon.

 

The instant Jeongyeon is gone from her sight, the instant Mina leans back on her seat, head looking up at that white ceiling she’s been familiar with for the past few Christmas Eves. She opens the second drawer of her desk, pulling out the [Barrell Bourbon Batch 005](https://www.barrellbourbon.com/), her favorite bottle of whiskey. 

 

She takes a swig and then another and then another, until she knows that she won’t be remembering a thing tomorrow.

 

//

 

12:00. Merry Christmas, Chaeyoung.

 

She hands over her apron to the one taking her place, a Kim Dahyun, who’s probably worse off than her in terms of financial stability. Unlike her, Chaeyoung enjoys being here. It's quieter than most places and the drinks are smooth. Although it's cold, the heat generators do a good job of keeping everyone warm as they watch the fireworks blow off into the distance. This place is alright, and she doesn't mind spending Christmas Eve here.

 

“Hey there, Eagle,” Chaeyoung greets, watching Dahyun tie the apron embroidered with a  Kim's Rooftop Bar  around her waist. Yeah it's unoriginal but Yeri, the owner’s daughter, came up with it, and after meeting that girl only once, it's definitely a name fitting of its creator. Completely one-dimensional.

 

“Sup, tiger,” Dahyun greets back after she finishes tying the apron around her waist. She takes a glance at one of the orders written on a small sheet of paper hung up on a clothesline. “Is there something up?” she asks when she gets to work on mixing the drinks.

 

“I was just wondering if you needed anything. I'm sure no one wants to work on Christmas Eve...well, Christmas now I guess.”

 

“You're too nice for your own good Chae. I don't know how many times we’ve been over this, but I don't need the charity. Me and Sana can take care of ourselves.”

 

“But-”

 

“You need the money more than I do, Chae. I have Sana while you…” Dahyun stops herself, knowing what she was about to say wasn't all too appropriate.

 

Chaeyoung drops her head, nodding a few times. “Right, you guys have each other.”

 

“Look,” Dahyun starts, dropping what she’s doing to give Chaeyoung her full attention. “I know you’re pitying me for working on Christmas, but it’s fine. We’re fine. Me and Sana are going to Rockefeller’s today.”

 

“Skating?”

  
  


“Yeah, we’re skating.”

 

“But Sana doesn’t know how to skate.”

 

“That’s why we’re going.”

 

“Oh,” Chaeyoung utters, a small smile adorning her face. “Have fun then. I’ll see you.” 

 

Chaeyoung turns to the rooftop door, ready to leave, but when she’s close, Dahyun calls out to her once more.

 

“Hey, Chaeyoung!”

 

Chaeyoung glances backwards and sees Dahyun’s nostalgic smile beaming back at her. God, she misses Dahyun so much. Friends like her are so hard to come by, but lately with the piling bills and Sana herself, she and Dahyun never get to hang out or talk anymore. This was probably the first time in a couple months that they’ve exchanged more than a sentence to each other. 

 

That’s why she  almost  cries when Dahyun says…

 

“Merry Christmas, Chaeyoung.”

 

Chaeyoung smiles when she says , “Merry Christmas to you too, Dubs.”

 

It’s when she notices the light of the thirty-fourth floor of that towering skyscraper turn off.

 

//

 

It’s a Christmas miracle when it starts to snow, but then it always snows so Mina doesn’t give a shit when it does. It’s more annoying than it is beautiful since it always somehow trips her up at the worst of times. Like that one time when was driving up to Flushing for a convention she was presenting at, and it started to snow till she couldn't see a single thing on the road. Jeongyeon forgave her for losing an investor since she knew the circumstances, but Mina only blames herself for thinking she could drive in that alone.

 

“Fuck you Jeongyeon,” she mumbles as her drunken self stumbles on the pavement, towards that kebab place just around the corner she frequents when she needs a quick snack.

 

It’s her words, Mina determines, that’s made her turn off the lights of the office and start heading down for something to eat. It’s not as if she cares, no, she doesn’t care too much (that’s what she keeps telling herself). However, she keeps replaying that last word in a mantra, that last word Jeongyeon said before she left.

 

Alone . Mina is always alone. Because if you are, then no one would leave. It’s safe, and it’s the way it’s always been for her. Even when Jeongyeon gives her kind smiles and thoughtful invitation to parties, she makes sure to decline, because if she says yes, then that means she’s venturing further into a relationship that’ll only disappoint her in the end.

 

What she’s doing now is how it’s supposed to be, how it should be.

 

But then why does she feel so pathetic?

 

She becomes even more so when she sees the kebab cart nonexistent, and she’s left leaning against a trash can looking like a nun that’s just gotten her first whiff of weed and her first drink of beer. She doesn’t look right, no, she looks absolutely fucked.

 

And it’s Christmas so no one gives a damn about a wasted woman on the street smelling like trash. They're probably singing Christmas carols to their naive children in front of the fireplace.

 

Okay, wait a second. There's something coming up...is she throwing up? Nevermind, it's gone.

 

She's going to rest here for a while.

 

//

 

Chaeyoung likes to think she’s independent, having been able to single-handedly pay her tuition bartending in four different venues throughout the course of her stay at CUNY, the City University of New York. 

 

However, Chaeyoung knows it’s far from the truth, because independence is, unknown to many, very much a team effort. With Dahyun by her side, she’s kept herself sane through the late night shifts typing on her computer while at the same time, mixing whiskey and tequila for a leering patron at the bar. At times, Sana would come to her dorm, a bottle of sprite in her hand as she retells the story of her day whenever Dahyun isn’t available, sometimes even helping her with modeling for her art projects.

 

Independence is just a myth because she knows people can’t do  life alone without some help.

 

It’s why Chaeyoung knows she can’t go home without helping this stupid woman hunched over a trash can.

 

However, when she looks closely, it’s strange how everything the woman is wearing is all so...gucci. From the purse she’s clutching to the heels she’s wearing, it seems so fancy, so out of her league that Chaeyoung just wishes she could fight her urge to just mug the woman. That jacket would fetch her at least a month’s worth of groceries, maybe even more. It might even give her spending money that would probably be used to fix the noisy air-conditioner that’s been roaring through her apartment.

 

But then she remembers it’s midnight on Christmas, and a mugging is probably the last thing this lonely woman needs. 

 

“You there. You slimy bastard.”

 

Chaeyoung scoffs when she sees the woman lean against the metal trash can like she owns it, arms crossed, haughty eyes as she looks condescendingly up at the sober person in front of her.

 

Typical. These rich business executives are always a predictable bunch. They’ll look at you funny, tell you your clothes are probably hand-me-downs you got from the landfill, and then they’ll just...puke...all...over...your...shoes.

 

 

* * *

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Mina wakes up with a splitting headache, made worse by the light coming from the window. She tries to avert her sight from the light, but it seems the place where she stayed has no blinds, and brightness covers the whole apartment.

Her eyes get accustomed to the brightness, her eyes settling in on the lazyboy across from the bed, a jacket resting on top of it. She takes a closer look, spotting that it's her jacket and then she looks down at herself.

Her red sweater is still on, signs of the coffee that she spilled yesterday still present. Though when she brings her nose to smell it, it doesn't smell of americano or even of the whiskey she drank last night. No, its earthy and smoky. It's more like tea, and it's weird because she doesn't drink tea. She prefers coffee.

She decides to wave it away, preferring instead to figure out where the hell she is, considering the room she's in is incredibly bare and lacking of personality. It's as if she was put into a random hospital room, forgetting to note that she has a V.I.P room reserved for her up on the uppermost floor of New York Presbyterian. Damn EMT’s must not have seen the card in her purse.

Mina takes note of how a lone poster is posted on the wall near the door, an In Utero Nirvana poster. It’s the only piece that paints what kind of person her occupant is. She’s never liked Nirvana - too loud for her taste - and that only spells trouble. 

That’s when the door opens and her eyes dart towards the figure holding a tray of food standing in between the doorframe.

“You’re awake.” 

Cute. That’s the first word that runs through Mina’s mind, with the woman’s red and green sweater and the fluffy tiger slippers she’s sporting. She’s small, like an adorable pomeranian, no a cub, yeah a bear cub. However, dark thoughts cloud Mina’s mind as to why a cute Christmas loving woman is holding a tray like she’s about to give her breakfas-

“I brought you breakfast.”

Well she’ll be damned. It is for her. 

Mina raises a hand, stopping the woman from advancing to give her the tray of bacon and eggs. 

“W-Who are you?” Mina waits for a second before her eyes widen in fear. “You kidnapped me, didn’t you? Look, I can pay you how ever much you want. I’ve got the money. I work at the Yoo Corpor-”

“I didn’t kidnap you.” She walks closer to the hungover woman on the bed. “And the name is Chaeyoung.”

Mina watches Chaeyoung set up the tray so that it’s lying comfortably on her lap, and Mina doesn’t even pay the food a glance because she’s watching how the girl’s chest heaves when she’s breathing and how her eyes shine with anticipation on how the food might taste for the woman on the bed. 

Wait, this is freaky. Get a hold of yourself, she thinks. She's seen pretty girls everywhere, in the street, in the office building, this is New York for crying out loud! Even Jeongyeon, as much as she hates to admit it, is model material! This Chaeyoung is just a woman she's met that seems like her apartment could use some interior decorating. 

Suddenly, a loud whooshing sound reverberates throughout the whole room, and Mina notices Chaeyoung just sigh in boredom, as if it's normal and should be ignored. However this is Myoui Mina, director of the financial department of Yoo Corporation, and she will not turn a blind eye to ignorance.

“What’s that sound I’ve been hearing?” Mina questions, her finger pointing up at the ceiling, not really understanding how it came from the vents.

“Oh.” Chaeyoung points up to the gated hole. “The air conditioning for this place is a bit messed up.”

“Why don’t you just have the landlord fix it? Just ring them up on the landline and they’ll…” She trails when she notices the cute cub-looking woman’s face deflate at her words. “What’s wrong?”

“I just...nothing. You’re exactly what I expected.”

Mina frowns. What does that mean? She’s not one to be read; she reads people. She’s sure she’s kept her whole life under wraps and that no one could see the layers within. No one, not even her brother, who she thinks is probably the closest thing she has to real family, knows what she’s thinking.

“I’m sorry if I disappoint, but listen, I’ve got a merger with a company coming up and I’m sorry to tell you that I’m not eating any of…” She waves at the tray of food on her lap. “...whatever this is. I have to go.”

Mina grabs the handles of the tray and lifts it up from her lap, shoving it in the arms of a stone-faced Chaeyoung, like she expected this sort of behavior from her. 

Mina hates it. God, she hates being looked at all weird. She’s normal! (she doesn’t know how many times she has to repeat that to herself.)

“It’s Christmas.” Chaeyoung sets the tray down on the bedside table. “And I’m sure you’re not getting any trains to Manhattan any time soon. They shuttered the station here.” Leave it to the stupid metro system to screw her over. 

Mina’s eyes dart to the window, a blanket of snow covering the city. She could barely see anything, only spotting the street lights that dim ever so lowly. 

“Where am I right now?” 

“The Bronx.”

Fuck. This is the last place Mina wants to be right now. This is the worst place she could’ve gone to, especially during this time, during this holiday, when people just seem to forget all their problems even if it’s still screaming right in front of them. It’s a joke, a farce, and it’s completely stupid how a simple day of caroling and gifts could make people forget. 

But she supposes it’s better when you have a family.

“Look, Chaeyoung. I appreciate the gesture, but I have to get going to Manhattan.” 

Mina flings the covers from her body, when she’s met with a rush of chilled wind. She hugs herself, and she burrs from the cold.

“W-Why i-is it s-so c-cold?” Mina immediately takes back the blanket and wraps herself fully with it. It's been years since her body’s been harrassed by the weather like this. From expensive jackets to living in a mansion that she calls her penthouse, she's never had to worry about the ‘cold’. 

“I’m trying to save money, alright?” Chaeyoung grabs the handles of the tray and slams the tray back down on Mina’s lap. “So do me a favor and not waste the money I spent on groceries this month.”

Mina has never seen such fire from anyone’s eyes. It burns so bright, so viciously that Mina just shivers from the sight (and she knows it's not because it’s cold). Her own eyes avoid the woman’s in front of her before she stares down at the plate of food in front of her. 

It's simple and it's severely processed. It tears her apart that this woman is egging her on to down this heart attack in front of her. Is this what they're selling in the groceries these days? Absolute farce! She’ll have a word with Jeongyeon about opening a new branch of whole foods in the coming months.

Mina brings the bacon stabbed with a fork to her mouth, slowly and cautiously, while her eyes look up furtively at the intimidating woman in front of her, who's staring at her with hardened eyes and a scowl imprinted on her face.

A few crunches and a swallow, she finishes the first bite, and wow...i-it's just that...she hasn't had a homemade meal in such a long time. It almost brings tears to her eyes, but she stops herself and hardens. Crying is for the weak and she's not weak.

She's not weak.

“It's okay,” Mina lies, setting the fork down on the plate with a small clank. She looks up, eyes catching Chaeyoung’s. “Why am I here?”

Mina swears she sees the edge of Chaeyoung’s lips turn into a slight smirk before it disappears fully. No please, please don't make it embarrassing. She’s rich and a public figure. She’s not supposed to-

“You passed out drunk hunched over my shoes that you vomited on.”

Again. Fuck. This is embarrassing.

Chaeyoung continues, “Now I wanted to leave you there, but based on what you were wearing, I figured you had the money to pay for it.”

Mina buries her face into her hands, contemplating her life choices and whether she should jump out the window or murder this Chaeyoung girl because no one and she means no one should ever witness such a form of Mina Myoui in their lifetime. Then she remembers that she already made terrible life decisions last night, and she doesn't wish to add suicide or homicide to that list.

She squeezes her eyes shut as she sighs before she relents. “How much is the bill?”

An amused huff comes from Chaeyoung before she says, “At this point? Nothing, because I figured you need to know that not everything can be solved with money.”

Mina stares exasperatedly at Chaeyoung. She grits her teeth as she says, “Then what is the form of payment?”

“Skating,” Chaeyoung blurts out. “Do you know how to skate?”

“What?” Mina could not understand whatever this Chaeyoung girl is saying, but if it's getting on one of those icy death traps called rinks then she’s out.

“Sana and Dubu couldn't go to Rockefeller’s today because of the blizzard so they’re skating at the park. The pond froze over so we’re thinking of doing it there.”

Sana? Dubu? Rockefeller’s? Pond? What the heck did this woman just say? Did she really just get invited to skate with a bunch of low-life scum who can't afford to buy good bacon? 

First off, no, she doesn't even accept Jeongyeon’s invitations for high end parties. She only sometimes ends up there because she has to appear at least once in a year. 

Second, ice rinks are already bad but at least they’re glossed over by a zamboni. This pond isn't and is just asking for a trip to the emergency room. 

Third, she doesn't know how to skate. No one ever taught her.

No one ever tried.

“Don't tell me you don't know how to skate?” 

Mina closes her eyes shut again as she sighs. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she nods before she looks up.

“Yeah I don't. So you guys can have fun while I try to find a stable internet connection, alright?”

Mina sees her phone on the bedside table and reaches for it, but then Chaeyoung steps in her way, blocking her hand. 

“What are you doing?”

“Stopping you from whatever it is you were trying to do, because all I know is you're going with me to the park and we're going to skate and we're going to have fun, like everyone does on Christmas.”

“I’m not like everyone else. I don’t do Christmas. I don’t know the first thing about…” She waves her hand in the air. “...whatever it is you people do on Christmas.”

“We’re not aliens. We’re humans just like you.”

“Humans that haven’t made anything of themselves? Wasting away in a one bedroom apartment where the best thing in your puny life is the cucumber sale at the grocery store? We’re different, you and I. I became something, not like you...you…”

“Don’t even finish that sentence because it seems off you’re worse off than I am.”

Mina furrows her brows. “What are you-”

“You were drunk. You were alone. It’s Christmas and when I checked your phone to see if anyone was missing you last night, all I saw was a background picture of a kebab place. You’re sad. You’re living a sad life.”

Mina scoffs. “I don’t need anyone like you to tell me what I am.”

“Fine, but the deal still stands. You’re going skating and you’re going to do something other than work on Christmas. Who know how many years you’ve been wasting away in a stupid office?”

Mina crosses her arms, huffing and puffing, before she growls out a “Fine.”

Chaeyoung straightens herself, having found herself towering over Mina’s covered figure on the bed. She’s never been this livid, this worked up, but if this is what it takes to get some sense into that stuck up business executive’s head, then she’s going to do it one way or another.

Chaeyoung gestures her head to the bathroom. “Go freshen up. I have some spare clothes that might fit.”

Chaeyoung walks away, mind swirling with thoughts of “What the fuck am I doing?”

//

(“It's matcha, isn't it?”

Chaeyoung turns, watching as she comes over, long legs and long hair settling right beside her ask they walk. For a moment, Chaeyoung stills, having been entranced by the girl’s beauty. Though when her gaze lingers a little longer than it should have, she tears her eyes away, hoping to God that she didn't notice. 

“What's matcha?”

“Your favorite flavor. It's matcha, right?” The girl comments, and Chaeyoung finds herself looking again. She's looking again. 

Those big plump lips that move when she speaks, that hair that billows flawlessly from the December breeze, and those eyes that look to her with such innocence, such child-like intentions (unlike hers, to be honest) - it doesn't fail to make Chaeyoung feel an unrivaled sense of gratefulness, that this perfection is giving her the time of day.

“It is, but what's the occasion?”

That's when the girl’s lips upturn, and Chaeyoung knows that going to her classes is the last thing she’ll be able to do today. 

The girl grabs Chaeyoung’s wrist, willing her away from the school grounds and into the world outside.)

//

“Hey Dubu. Can you ask Sana if she has an extra pair of skates?” Chaeyoung presses the phone harder against her ear when she sees Mina eyeing her from the other side of the dining table.

“Of course she does. We always keep one for you.”

Chaeyoung takes a glance at Mina once again, the tray that once lay on the woman’s lap now on the table. She keeps picking at the food, as if reluctant to eat it, and Chaeyoung can't understand how bacon’s so unappetizing. It's bacon for crying out loud! 

“That's not what I mean. I mean other than for me.” Chaeyoung chooses to stand this time, shifting to the kitchen, away from the business executive’s prying eyes. 

“Oh,” Dahyun utters. “Is there…”

“A woman,” Chaeyoung blurts out, but then she catches her words. “I-It’s not what you think. I just helped another one.”

An exasperated sigh comes from the line before Dahyun’s tired voice spouts out a “Another one? These people are not stray cats, Chae. They require so much more care than just treats and a bowl of water.”

(This woman definitely seems to require more care)

“Look Dahyun. Just do this for me once, alright? I think it'll do me good, do us good.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Her Dahyun. We need to get over her, and we're not going to do that if we just close ourselves off like this.”

“Chae. I think you're the one who needs this the most.”

Chaeyoung sighs, nodding a few times in agreement. Then, she relents,”Yeah. Yeah you’re right. Just forget about it.”

She’s about to end the call if not for the few and urgent ‘waits’ that come from Dahyun.

“What? What is it?”

“Her name.”

Chaeyoung frowns. Not once has Dahyun ever asked about her charitable take-ins of strays she finds on the street, much less as important as a name. That’s when she realizes that she hasn’t even asked for a name for the woman at the dining table.

“I-uh...the blizzard is screwing up t-the con-conn-”

Chaeyoung hangs up abruptly before she closes her eyes in sheer stupidity. She pinches the bridge of her nose in frustration before she heads out of the kitchen to the dining room, where again, she meets that stuck-up business executive just poking away at her bacon like it’s human flesh. Thing is: this woman probablys enjoy that, considering that’s what she probably does to her subordinates - cook em’ up and eat them.

She gets that gruesome thought out of her head before she takes the seat all the way across the table, gingerly picking away her own food. Such a hypocrite, she thinks. 

“I’ve spoke with my friend. She’s got an extra pair so we’re set on that.”

At that moment, a clanging resonates throughout the room, and Dahyun looks up from her breakfast to see that the woman has slammed her fork on the table - her eyes livid and her upper lip quivering from pure anger. Nothing has ever set Chaeyoung on the edge more than this woman right here, and it’s certainly not a welcome sight to behold. 

“This is stupid. How is skating going to pay for your shoes?”

Chaeyoung would laugh, if not for that the woman still hasn’t taken a bite out of her food or that she probably dented the table from the force she exerted. So her face is deadpan with the occasional nose twitch that signals her evident displeasure at the inconvenience this woman has given her.

But she promised her and she’ll hold that promise until she dies.

“There’s a reason, but I’m not too comfortable spouting out my life story to a stranger. I’ve already given you a bed. I’ve already given you food. Don’t make me give out my motives also. There’s only so much I can give. I’m already living in this home and eating food that could give me a heart attack in four years. Just let it be and just enjoy the moment…”

“Mina. My name is Mina,” she says - sensing the cue to introduce herself.

“Well Mina…” Chaeyoung takes a look at the watch on her wrist before she looks up. “We’ve got approximately thirteen minutes before Sana falls on her ass and I want to be there when it happens. So I’ll get you your clothes and we can be on our way. The sooner we can get this stupid deal I made out of the way, the sooner you and I can get out of each other’s way, capiche?”

“Capiche.”

//

There’s only so much that Chaeyoung could take as she watches Mina lead towards the pond a few blocks south. It’s as if angels themselves crafted such a beauty, sculpted her very features with God’s chisel, and sprinkled her with only a pinch of kindness. Now Chaeyoung doesn’t know if she wants Mina to be kind, because if she was, then she wouldn’t be able to control herself. It would only take a lunge and their lips would meet, soft and wet. Now-

Chaeyoung shakes such horny thoughts out of her head, eyes shifting left and right - just trying to avoid the executive in front of her. But then and there, Chaeyoung watches how Mina bobs and weaves towards the pond, avoiding all the holes and dangerous alleyways, like she knows exactly where everything is.

This Mina person is certainly a mysterious woman.


	3. Chapter 3

“Just a moment.” Mina turns around to Chaeyoung’s call and Chaeyoung gestures to the sign above. “I have to visit somebody. Wait here. No one will harm you...probably.”

Chaeyoung leaves Mina squirming outside and she takes a step towards the inside of the homeless shelter. There’s a sweet fragrance, smelling of strawberries and honey. She always loves coming here, a little because of the aura but mainly because of the body slumped against the wall wasting away in self-pity.

“Momo,” Chaeyoung calls and the limp body instantly shoots up, eyes searching for her own and they meet. Chaeyoung has never seen such happiness emit from anyone other than Momo and she’s glad that there’s at least somebody in this world that finds glee in the littlest of things.

Chaeyoung doesn’t understand that visiting Momo is more important than she thinks.

“Chaeng!” Momo throws her arms around Chaeyoung’s neck, suffocating her. If Momo was dressed more appropriately, Chaeyoung wouldn’t have guessed that Momo is barely eating three meals a day. The strength this girl has is extraordinary. 

“Whoa there Mo. I don’t have much money for medical bills. You better get off before something bad happens.”

Momo pulls away disappointed, but still sports a grin on her face. Life has battered this poor woman down - it astonishes Chaeyoung why she hasn’t given up sooner.

 

“What has you visiting? It’s Christmas I know, but shouldn’t you be with your family or something?”

Chaeyoung smiles slightly as she shakes her head.

“You and I both know that going back to family is the last thing we’d ever do.”

Momo purses her lips before she nods in agreement. 

“You’re right.” Momo takes a step back before she adds, “Well what’s the occasion?”

Chaeyoung takes a glance towards the entrance, where she sees the corner of the coat Mina’s wearing billowing from the chill wind. She turns back where she’s met with Momo’s eyes that followed her own.

“Is that…” Momo trails off but Chaeyoung catches the gist and she waves her hands in denial.

“Oh no. She’s just a...person. An acquaintance. She’s coming skating with me.”

Chaeyoung watches as Momo’s face morphs into something sly - her eyes becoming smaller and her lips forming into a smirk. 

“Skating huh? And then what? Something fun?”

Chaeyoung laughs as she shakes her head. “You have a dirty mind Mo. Trust me, we’re not like that.”

“Well what’s her name?”

Chaeyoung doesn’t realize the world is about to upturn and everything would be messed up. She really needs to catch what she’s saying, but she supposes she wouldn’t have known otherwise what her words really meant.

“Her name is Mina.”

And Chaeyoung has never seen any face that’s gone so pale. 

//

(“Moguri,” she calls and Momo looks over, a rise in her brow and a tilt on her head.

“What is it?” 

“You’re my best friend, you know that right?”

Momo nods slowly, not truly understanding what she is getting at, but she relents and just follows the flow of the whole situation. It takes her a moment to understand: something is up, but she can’t put her finger on it.

“I guess. You’re the only one I talk to.”

“Know that if anything happens. We’ll be friends alright?”

Momo purses her lips. Her hands wring and a frown paints her face. If she wants to say something, then say it. Doing this just throws her off and honestly isn’t the most pleasant feeling to encounter.

But Momo stops her thinking and she nods once again, complying to cowardice, and says, “We’ll be friends.”

Her cheeks blush a brilliant shade of red and Momo’s stern gaze softens.

“Thank you.”

And then it stops.)

// 

“You were long,” Mina comments as she sees Chaeyoung emerge from the homeless shelter. 

Chaeyoung presses her lips tight as she apologetically smiles at the rigid eyes pointing back at her. With a flick of her head and a step towards the park, she waits until Mina is side by side to answer her back.

“I was visiting a friend.”

“Is your friend the sloth from Zootopia? Because you guys were in there forever.”

Chaeyoung grins before she shakes her head at Mina’s description. She doesn’t know if that was meant to be taken as a joke, but it’s Mina so she’s not too hopeful on the prospect of the ice melting.

“No, we just...talked. About her past and stuff. It was all very...surreal.” 

Mina scoffs. "Homeless people always have a story. Pity is their drug. So don’t give in.”

Chaeyoung scowls. Mina is less than perfect, full of judgmental stares and callous remarks, but this, this is disappointing. It makes her nauseated to her core and she’s trying her best not to call her out on her insensitiveness. 

She understands that Mina might not fathom their struggles, probably having been made numb from toil by the gold flowing into her pockets. But Chaeyoung also understands that she may not know everything about Mina, so she holds her judgements for now and decides to wait until later to bring it up.

“She’s a friend. Don’t say anything for you don’t know anything.”

 

Silence follows and they walk through that thick fog of awkwardness to the park - which is so close that they could see the two figures gliding through the uneven ice with smiles on their faces. It’s a stark contrast to the glower on Mina’s face, but Chaeyoung sneers that this is karma for what has happened so far in the past few hours. 

(Mina’s been a pain)

“Who’s Dubu and who’s Sana?” Mina walks ahead of Chaeyoung, her hands wringing and her heart drumming as she looks down towards the rugged ice. She bites her lip as she turns her head slightly to glance back, noticing that Chaeyoung has a shit-eating grin on her face as she watches her squirm. She almost rolls her eyes, but she’s too preoccupied with the possibility that in ten minutes she might be dead from splitting her head open on the ice. 

With a chuckle, Chaeyoung points to the taller of the two, “That’s Sana,” then to the smaller one, “And that’s Dubu. Her real name is Dahyun, but that’s just my nickname for her. You can call her Dubu though; she won’t mind.”

Mina nods slowly before Chaeyoung moves forward and takes her hand into hers. An incredulous expression paints Mina’s face as she looks to the intertwined hands and then back to Chaeyoung’s own face - who sports an equally shocked look on her face as if she didn’t mean to do that at all. Then their hands break and Mina is left colder for another moment. 

Her hand falls to her side and Mina wipes it roughly on her coat.

“I’m sorry. My mind wasn’t-”

“Don’t. Just don’t do it again.” Mina takes a step back and Chaeyoung’s eyes follow her. She gestures with her chin to the duo who seems to be oblivious to everything around them. “You go first.”

With a sigh and a shake of her head, Chaeyoung walks forward before the frown on her face morphs into a smile - albeit strained and not how she really feels at the current moment - but how could she not smile when she sees her best friend’s own smile lighting up the world. Then it hits her all too quickly, what does Mina’s smile look like?

Her thoughts are cut off by Dahyun’s raucous shouting as Sana falls on her butt for what seems like the fourth time already since the markings on the snow next to the frozen over pond indicate it so.

(Dahyun and Chaeyoung figures they needed to keep count of how many times Sana would fall in one session somehow. Then they’d completely tease her about it later. 

“Eleven times! You fell on your ass eleven times! How do you do it?!”)

Sana is a real good sport about it though.

“And another one bites the dust Chae!” Dahyun yells as she takes a branch and marks another line on the snow.

“I’ll get the hang of it one day. You’ll see. You’ll all see!” Sana jokes around as she smiles her pearly whites. It’s almost as white as the snow itself, and Chaeyoung takes a look back to Mina to see if such an infectious smile is so contagious it passed along to her. 

Sadly, that perpetual frown is still embedded on the business executive’s face as her arms cross and she taps her foot impatiently on the snow at the edge of the pond.

“Here we go honey.” Dahyun grasps Sana’s arm as she pulls her up from the ice. “There you go. Be careful next time. I don’t want you to get hurt anymore.”

“But you still laugh when I do.” Sana pouts as her eyes droop on Dahyun.

“It’s cause I can never get mad at you and being sad isn’t in my programming.”

“Are you implying you’re a robot?”

Dahyun shakes her head at the question as a grin creeps up to her face.

“How can I be a robot if I’m in love with you?”

“Jesus Christ, get a room,” Chaeyoung interrupts the couple’s love-dovey time as she points with her thumb behind her, “We have a guest.”

The couple immediately breaks away from each other as they greet Mina. But they only nod at her once, after spotting the label on her coat and the expression on her face. 

Chaeyoung notices the coldness emitting from her normally warm friends and walks up to them, balancing on the ice with her normal shoes. She finally reaches them, eyes burning holes into their skulls as the couple avoid their friend’s fiery glare.

“No need to chew her out. She’s harmless.”

“They all are,” Sana comments. She takes a glance at Mina, who’s squirming for whatever reason as she stands idly by the ice. “Then they just look at you and don’t do a thing.”

 

“What is she Chae? A CEO? A board member?” Dahyun adds. 

 

Chaeyoung sighs as she looks down towards her feet before she answers.

“She works at Yoo Corp-”

“Of fucking course she does.” Dahyun’s venomous voice stuffs Chaeyoung’s ears, causing her to grimace from the rancor. It takes a great deal to make Kim Dahyun angry and when she is, Chaeyoung makes sure to be at least a room away as there’s only a few ways to calm such impassioned rage down.

Good thing is: Sana’s one of them.

With a slight tug to Dahyun’s shoulder, Sana tries to make it right. Sana leans and whispers into her partner’s ear. 

“Calm down baby. She might not be so bad.” She turns her head and points with her chin. 

“Look at her. I think you made her scared. Remember she’s on our turf and not downtown in her penthouse.”

Dahyun’s shoulders slump as an exhale escapes her lips. She nods her head a few times before she leans into Sana’s warm body. It comforts her so and she wouldn’t have any other person by her side.

A cough breaks their little moment once again and they’re met by another piercing glare from Chaeyoung.

“Where are the skates?”

They point towards their backpacks which lie on top of each other next to the markings on the snow. It takes a moment but Chaeyoung finally reaches Mina with two pairs of skates in her hands.

She pushes one of them towards Mina. “Put it on. I’ll teach you.”

Gingerly, Mina takes them into her hands, eyeing them with a great deal of fear one would think she hasn’t fired a few unlucky bastards on their birthdays throughout her years. However right now, her heart beats with such gusto and loudness, she’s sure that Chaeyoung could hear it also.

But…

“You look great today,” Chaeyoung compliments and Mina stares quizzically at the poor woman. Chaeyoung points her thumb behind to the couple still skating in the back, a loud yelp resonating throughout the pond area. “I’ll wait for you over there after you’ve got them on. I just want to catch up with those two for the time being okay?”

Slowly nodding, Mina stays silent and watches as Chaeyoung walks over to the pair once again being all lovey dovey after Sana fell to the ground for the fifth time. 

With her arm holding the skates, Mina presses a hand upon her chest, checking her heart if it’s still there and hasn’t run out on her just yet. With the way it’s pounding, she fears it might’ve already escaped.

However the only thing that has escaped is her mind at this current moment, because she’s definitely not thinking clearly.

//

(“For a second there, I thought you were avoiding me,” Chaeyoung says as she approaches the long-haired girl sitting on the park bench.

A pair of eyes stare at her as she advances - so mysterious and void of any emotion. It’s like staring into nothingness and Chaeyoung feels as though she’ll fall into such mysteriousness like an endless pit. Chaeyoung doesn’t seem to mind it one bit if she does.

“I’ve just been busy. Sorry if I...Anyway, how have you been?”

Chaeyoung sits on the bench, not too close but not too far either. If anything, they may seem just like good friends, but neither of them definitely don’t see each other in that light. They prefer more...intimate measures. However today, it seems as though distance is one such measure the long-haired girl would like to partake in. 

Chaeyoung doesn’t like her being so aloof.

“I’ve...been around. You know how it is. I can never stay in one place without going a little crazy.”

With a light chuckle and a few small nods, the long-haired girl agrees, “Yeah I know.”

Suddenly, a rancid cough emits from the long-haired girl as she doubles over and clutches her stomach in excruciating pain. Chaeyoung immediately comes closer, having a hand rub the girl’s back as the effects of the cough rescinds with each passing second. 

“Are you okay? Should we get something for you to drink?”

The girl shakes her head ‘no’ befores she answers. “It’s fine. It’s just a cough.”

Chaeyoung bites her lip - not satisfied with the answer - but she soon relents and she’s left worrying about the long-haired girl once again.)

//

“CHAEYOUNG! WHAT THE HECK?!”

Chaeyoung’s laugh reverberates throughout the pond as she clutches her stomach watching Mina tumble around in her skates.

It had been...what? Six or seven seconds since Chaeyoung let go of Mina’s waist? To see her bumbling around like a circus clown on a giant ball is such a sight for her to behold. Surely this can’t be real, but Chaeyoung’s no fool and her eyes tell her all.

This Mina is skating!

“If I break anything, you’re paying for it!” Mina yells once more causing even Dahyun to crack a slight smile at the business executive’s plight.

“Ms. Mina!” Sana calls out playfully. “We don’t have money for that so just hang on in there! At worst, you could be like me and just fall on your ass!”

Chaeyoung stands firmly on the ice with her sneakers, her skates discarded next to the marks in the snow. She’s having fun just watching Mina. It should be weird, having known this girl for three hours, but it’s comfortable, like she’s known Mina for years. Though when another yelp and the crashing of butt to ice comes, followed by a loud screech from the ice princess, Chaeyoung comfort becomes immediate dread as Mina meets the ground.

Chaeyoung runs over, careful not to slip like the others, and crouches over her fallen comrade on the ground. She brings a hand to the Mina’s shoulder, but she doesn’t budge, doesn’t move, and doesn’t speak.

Increasing heart rate. Pupils dilating. An unexplainable dryness in her throat. Chaeyoung’s jaw quivers as she darts her head to Dahyun and Sana, who notices their friend’s condition. They run over, crouching over the lifeless body. Sana shakes Mina a few times, but Dahyun’s checking Chaeyoung, who’s shivering even though she has a coat on.

Dahyun takes Chaeyoung’s face into her hands.

“Hey tiger. One...Two-Breath with me come on. One...Two...Three.” 

Chaeyoung’s breathing settles into a rhythm as she stares into Dahyun’s eyes, full of warmth and understanding. Soon, her loud breathing settles and nods once to reassure her.

“I’m fine Dahyun. I’m fine.” Chaeyoung grasps Dahyun’s hands which are caressing her face and pries them off. “Don’t worry. I’m fine.”

Dahyun’s hands lies limp beside her as her worried eyes stare at Chaeyoung’s.

“Don’t worry me like that. You know how I am when you’re like that.”

“I kn-”

“Guys she’s come to,” Sana interrupts as she’s holding Mina up by the shoulders. 

Chaeyoung peers over and her worried eyes meet Mina’s cold and steely ones. When Mina exhales heavily and shakes her head, Chaeyoung waits willfully, wanting to ask if she was okay.

“This was a mistake,” Mina affirms. She then sighs and unties her skates before she gets up, albeit slow and infirm, the trio following after her. “Give me my phone Chaeyoung.”

“It’s in the-”

“Then let’s go.” Mina pushes past the trio and towards the marks on the snow where her shoes lie. 

Chaeyoung purses her lips and exhales.

This was a mistake.

 

//

“Here’s your phone.” Chaeyoung offers the phone to Mina, who takes it with a desperate snatch, as if she couldn’t live without checking the stocks for a few hours. 

Chaeyoung watches her scroll through a bunch of junk on her phone while she palms her own phone in her hand, a measly flip phone that sometimes turns off randomly. It had been a gift; she didn’t have a phone. Beggars can’t be choosers she figures.

 

“I suppose you’re going back to Manhattan?” Chaeyoung inquires.

She doesn’t know why she feels disappointment all of a sudden. It’s like she failed in her task, whatever it is. She doesn’t even know herself. Her decisions the past few hours are unlike her. Maybe she wants Mina to see what it’s like to be in this situation in which you don’t even know if you’ll eat tonight or have to pay off your rent yet still have the mind to skate out in the blistering cold with your best friends. 

Chaeyoung doesn’t know. She just doesn’t.

Mina nods, “The station’s not shuttered anymore.” She sets her phone in her pocket. “The storm weathered down.”

Chaeyoung nods. “I’ll see you then.”

Mina gives a tight-lipped smile, probably the closest thing to a real smile she’ll get from the business executive in her lifetime. 

When Mina turns around and leaves through her apartment door, everything suddenly feels empty. The air conditioning stops its noises. The wind from the small blizzard outside is practically inaudible. 

Nothing. 

Chaeyoung hasn’t realized it until now, but she feels so alone. She’s in this apartment with a small tv and a dining table that couldn’t even fit more than three people. Her fridge is barren and the lights flicker on and off relentlessly.

What has her life amounted to?

She stares at that door, that alabaster colored door, her eyes void of any emotion. 

Then her phone rings and she brings it up to her ear.

“Is she gone?”

Chaeyoung gives a hum and says, “Yeah she’s gone.”

“Are you okay?”

She hates that question. It’s always asked at the worst times. She wants to scream ‘No it’s not okay. I’m not okay.’ but she can’t find the strength to do that. There isn’t much left in her system to talk to anyone today. She’s ready to fall down in her bed and waste away another night of her stupid life.

Christmas has always been such a toll on her.

“I've always had people leave me. Why did I think she was any different?”


	4. Chapter 4

Trying to let Jennie know that she needed the shift felt like torture. It felt like a thousand needles pricking at Chaeyoung’s dimpled cheeks and it seldom felt like she was going anywhere with it too. 

The rent went up a hundred — the landlord — a rotten louse of a woman going by the name of Solar — had figured she needed a new bag to go with her endless closet of jackets she got from Italy or Siberia. Really. Chaeyoung hates her so much. 

It’s a good thing Jennie let Chaeyoung be, relinquishing her shift to Chaeyoung after what felt like hours of convincing, probably because Jennie didn’t even need the cash anyway. She’s just a no-good rich college student who took the job because, and Chaeyoung quotes, “I wanted to see what these low-lives go through every day.” 

Oh god, the amount of fucks given that moment were too much for Chaeyoung to bear. Dahyun had to hold her back from springing out of the storage closet and throttling that stupid bitch talking on the phone.

It’s a good thing Dahyun’s sort of competent at lifting all those heavy wine boxes or Chaeyoung’ll be facing a lawsuit and some more money to be filtered out of her pocket. 

So Chaeyoung has to wear a jacket today — the braziers do well to keep her warm and comfortable but of course — there’s the terrible breeze that accompanies the cold weather. Hence, the jacket.

Chaeyoung keeps glancing at that skyscraper in the distance. Several floors are lit up so she guesses there’s some unlucky bastards who couldn’t catch a break come Christmas season. Still, that’s not what Chaeyoung is looking for. 

It’s that thirty-fourth floor. She had seen a sort of shadow creep by just an hour ago but there’s no light turning on. Ah, there it is, the lights have turned on.

Chaeyoung should stop. Dahyun had told her that her eyesight is like a Nikon camera with the way it focuses in on distant targets like this. 

Speaking of Dahyun…

“It’s that time of year again,” Dahyun sighs out before a small smile dances upon her lips. 

Chaeyoung frowns. “What do you mean? Of course. It’s Christmas.”

“Not that. I’m talking about how you always take an extra shift every time you…” Dahyun makes a gesture to explain what she means, but it just comes out stupid (like her). “...y-you take in some lost soul and try to heal them. Like they needed saving.”

Chaeyoung is cleaning the glasses — since the bar is awfully slow today — as she’s talking to Dahyun. Just this time, Chaeyoung wishes that this bar would be rampant so she could avoid such probing questions, but luck (as always) isn’t on her side. 

“I’m not trying to heal lost souls Dahyun. Didn’t you see Mina? She’s got it all under wraps.”

Dahyun scoffs before she asks, “And what about…” She trails off, realizing what she was about to say.

Chaeyoung catches on and understood what she meant. There’s no need to say anything more than what was said, because only one name could get both of them reeling back what they’re about to say.

“Save it. I don’t need a lesson. I’ve got my problems and you’ve got yours. You already have enough on your plate. You don’t need to solve mine.”

Chaeyoung sets down a glass she just dried on a small rag laid out on the counter, several other glasses laying upside down on it. The back and forth motion of the rag when she cleans calms her down tremendously — like some sort of therapeutic high that she gets from the rhythm. 

“I’m trying to solve yours because I can’t solve mine Chaeng! Sana…” Dahyun trails off again and so Chaeyoung tries to catch the words before they fall from its sentence. 

“Sana what? What did Sana do?”

Dahyun breathes harder as her face morphs into a frown. The light from the braziers frames her face. She looks down at the back and forth motion of the rag in Chaeyoung’s hand and then she looks up at Chaeyoung— screaming silently for her to understand.

And she does.

Chaeyoung’s eyes widen and she throws the rag on the counter, “Holy shit Dubs. Really? She really wants to? That’s great! I mean. Why not?”

Dahyun leans against the counter and crosses her arms. “We’re in no position to have a baby. It’ll just make things worse.”

“But s-she-”

“I’m working four jobs. She’s working three. If we do get one, then it’s a death sentence for us or for that baby. Knowing Sana, she’d gladly give her own life to get that baby a good life. Give the baby the life that we would’ve wanted. Understand Chae. It’s not possible.” 

“If money wasn’t a problem, would you?”

“Of course!” Dahyun exclaims. “I love her to death. Whatever she wants, I want. She’s my anchor from me flying up to you-know-what.”

“You wouldn’t kill yourself.”

“Try me.”

Chaeyoung sighs, picking up the rag from the counter before pointing said rag at Dahyun. She says, “You better not say that shit anymore. You-know-who can hear you up there and they wouldn’t want you to.”

“Just say her name Chae.”

“No,” Chaeyoung hisses. “I couldn’t…” She stops and hangs her head low. “I’m visiting her soon. You wanna come?”

Dahyun shakes her head. “I saw her yesterday after we skated. She kept asking about you.”

“She wouldn’t do that,” Chaeyoung scoffs out as she takes another wet glass and starts drying it.

“She would do that though. Remember?”

Chaeyoung stops the back and forth motion. She licks her lips before looks up at the skyscraper in the distance, the thirty-fourth floor light still lit up.

“I do but I don’t want to.” Chaeyoung turns her head to Dahyun. “Do you think you can finish up here? I’m going on break.”

Chaeyoung drops the rag on to the table again and rounds the corner of the counter. She heads towards the rooftop door before the corner of her eye catches a figure in the skyscraper move. The light turns off and the whole floor turns to black. She ignores it, moving further away from the bar.

“Hey Chae. I didn’t mean to say those thi-”

But the door slams and Chaeyoung’s gone.

//

Chaeyoung can't believe it. The kebab place is gone, replaced with a stupid hot dog stand that couldn't hold two candles to the kebab cart. Worst of all, it just started snowing. Figures, she thinks, there’s something called karma she’s been informed about - courtesy of Sana and her nightly runs with the Indian population in Queens. Never had she thought it was real, much less happen this blatantly towards her. 

It feels like she’s in an alternate universe when she finds herself sitting on a bench next to the hot dog stand, wielding a freshly cooked hot dog complimented with some relish and ketchup. She doesn’t like mustard much; she always thought it tasted weird. Still, she munches on said hot dog with fervor, hungry like a wolf since this is one of the few times she’s able to eat out. Truthfully, she shouldn’t even be eating out, but foresight is such a valuable trait, which — obviously — she does not have.

Living here for most of her life, she judges the snow flowing down from the sky. It won’t hurt her too bad — at most it would leave a blanket of snow that usually she’d be able to handle. She’d rather not deal with it today; conversations, like the one she had with Dahyun earlier, are rare, but when they do happen, it leaves her in a bad mood much greater than that of when the radiator broke mid January.

It’s when the snow above her doesn’t fall on her lap and the overcast sky doesn’t shine on her face that she looks up from her hot dog and to the person holding the umbrella over her. Moles spot her face, most notably the one on the bridge of her nose, and Chaeyoung almost reaches out to touch it if not for the fact that touching this person would probably cause a restraining order to be put against her, so she doesn’t do it.

“What are you doing?” Chaeyoung asks as she gets up before Mina’s hand stops her from doing so and so she sits back down. There’s a long, drawn out silence that would be strange, but this is Mina, rich person and cold bitch extraordinaire , and it becomes not so strange that she would be the one to do this sort of thing. 

Mina doesn’t speak, but she sets the umbrella in the middle of the bench, covering Chaeyoung, before she takes a seat on the other side of it. She looks into blank space, not bothering to answer Chaeyoung’s question. 

Chaeyoung repositions herself to match Mina, sparing a few glances if that girl would move just a tiny bit, but she doesn’t and Chaeyoung finds herself rigid as she munches slowly on her half-eaten hot dog. 

There’s a few awkward things in Chaeyoung’s life: That time when she came in late to class with her coat half burned from it laying on the radiator or that time when Dahyun took her to a club with Sana and she just sat there while Sana and Dahyun made out. This event right here is pretty much equal with both of them. 

Chaeyoung clears her throat a few times, seeing in her peripherals that Mina in the tiniest bit flinches from the action. That’s when she knows she’s being paid attention to and so Chaeyoung speaks.

“How are you?”

It takes a few seconds but Mina finally speaks a word. It’s soft and light as a feather. It’s barely room volume and much more of a whisper, but Chaeyoung could hear it. Her ears are trained for this sort of thing; trained meaning when Sana and Dahyun stay over, she could hear every little detail and she wants to kill herself by slamming her little toe over and over again on the table. Yeah, that much.

“Fine.”

More minutes pass and Chaeyoung’s hot dog slowly deflates back to the level of her waist, long forgotten and certainly not going to be eaten. It takes a few more minutes for Chaeyoung to ask another question, but she manages to eek it out before she needs to head back to the bar.

“Why are you here?”

This time, Mina speaks immediately. 

“It’s snowing and it’s cold and it’s stupid and I probably shouldn’t even care because the kebab place just shut down,” Mina huffs in rapid fashion, not stopping to breath before she rapid fires her next set of words, “And I’m here and I’m wondering if the stupid kebab cart would just magically pass by but you’re here with your stupid hot dog and I was wondering if I could eat with you but I couldn’t dare ask.” 

Chaeyoung takes it all in before a smile threatens to break out from her lips. She manages to quell the urge, but that doesn’t mean she’s not smiling on the inside. Because she is smiling on the inside, from all the corners of her body, she’s smiling or maybe she’s shivering, she doesn’t really know anymore. By the way, it’s really cold during December in New York City.

“Oh. There’s this kebab place next this place I work at but it’s way too expensive for someone like me. If you want some kebab-”

“Take me there.”

“O-Okay…”

And that’s how Chaeyoung finds herself tugged along by a rich business executive to an SUV that looks like it could carry even the President. It’s sleek and it’s black and it’s shinier than any car Chaeyoung has seen in her lifetime, and at the same time, it makes her feel small and unimportant. This car is probably worth more than her and thirty years would pass and it would still be worth more than her. 

She gives directions to the driver, a large gruff man looking like he’d be able to take down a dragon with just his pinky. He looks bulky and his eyes are little slits resembling that of a snake. Despite all this, his voice sounds like a mosquito flying around and Chaeyoung can’t unhear this atrocity. It’s that jarring. 

“Ms. Myoui, are you ready?”

Mina gives him a glare, “You don't have to ask me every time. It's getting annoying.”

The man lowers his head and turns back to the wheel. Chaeyoung tries to give him an apologetic look but he doesn't see, nor does he even try to see. His gaze is locked on to the road, unmoving and uncaring. Then he starts the car.

Chaeyoung sinks back into her seat, the one right next to Mina. Mina had told her to leave the box that’s laying on the far seat and so Chaeyoung had to take the middle one. Chaeyoung knows she shouldn't try to initiate small talk nor should she even steal looks, but she does it anyway, hoping that whatever Mina is trying to do has some sort of purpose. Maybe Mina will tell her in the future, maybe not; maybe Mina will disappear and she'll never been seen inside Chaeyoung’s circle of life. 

The latter seems more plausible than the former. Who'd want to tell her those kinds of things? It sounds awfully optimistic, something she's been jaded upon as young as four years old.

“What made you like kebabs?”

Jesus, has she always been this bad at small talk? Her inner monologue states that she has, but she's too oblivious to notice such terrible social skills. To think now would be the time to actually hear it; luck really isn't on her side.

Mina gives her a look, as if saying “Did you really just ask that?”, but Chaeyoung gives a look back, as if saying, “I'm sorry I'm stupid. Look at where I am in life and you'll understand.” But neither of them can read faces so well, forcing them to just turn away from each other saying something along the lines of, “Let's not talk anymore.”

And so they don't.

(In the future, Chaeyoung comments how their relationship stems from being able to talk through staring)

The driver has to drive slow and careful, as to not risk any accidents that seem so common during winter time. People would think dangerous weather would constitute some safer driving, but people aren't so smart, and so they're going at least ten below the speed limit.

Even so, to Mina, time is a commodity, and her driver is wasting it.

“Faster. If we don't get there in five minutes you're fired.”

Chaeyoung could hear the pedal as the driver pushes down on it and soon, she's clutching something as the speed forces her to grab hold of anything to keep her in place. It doesn't occur to her that that something is Mina’s arm, which, by the way, is really soft but at the same time firm. 

It takes four minutes for them to reach Chaeyoung’s workplace, the kebab restaurant on the first floor. Chaeyoung gets out of the car before holding the door for Mina. Looking back, she sees Mina still sitting pretty before the driver gets out of his car and opens the door for her. Chaeyoung rolls her eyes, closing her own door before she enters the building.

She could feel the rush of the wind when Mina enters the building, but she ignores it as she’s focused on the elevator numbers going down.

“Where are you going?” 

Chaeyoung turns her head to Mina, eyebrow raised as she waits for the elevator up to the top floor. Dahyun must be fuming right now, considering she’s about five minutes late and she’s sure Dahyun could eat a whole cow by now. 

Mina is snug with her long coat, arms crossed as she stares inquisitively at the poor bartender in front of her. Mina's expecting something, Chaeyoung thinks, though she can’t understand what’s got Mina in such a bad mood, save for the kebab cart closing down. But still, the kebab restaurant is right behind her. There’s no more reason to be angry. Although Chaeyoung can’t understand the whims of a rich aristocrat, she knows that food quells all sorts of ailments — one being bitchiness. 

“Up.” Chaeyoung points before she continues, “ To the Roof. I was on my lunch break.” Her eyebrows furrow as she crosses her own arms. She reaches behind her, pressing the button again, clearly frustrated by the absence of the elevator even though it’s been thirty seconds since she first pressed the button. 

Chaeyoung could see Mina stick a tongue in her cheek, which by the way, is one way to get Chaeyoung have sweat drip down the side of her face. 

“Eat with me,” Mina orders, not asking politely if Chaeyoung would kindly eat with her. It's stern and it's everything Chaeyoung remembers from her time in elementary school, it being laden with inner city kids and thus the teachers had to put a firm grip on the class.

If only Mina was her teacher back then, then maybe, just maybe, she would've have went for most of the days. 

“Dahyun is waiting for me to take over her shift. She's really hungry. I could ask her to eat with you if you want?” Chaeyoung offers and the elevator door opens with a ding. She reaches behind her and holds out her arm from letting the elevator close. 

It takes a second of silent staring, something so prevalent in Mina’s vocabulary; that stare that could tell her emotions so easily and what she's thinking. Even from before, Chaeyoung could see how Mina’s face betrayed her words. There's an angel behind the devil, she figures.

“No. I want you. I want to talk to you.” 

This time, Chaeyoung scoffs before she follows with, “If you wanted to say something, you'd have already said it. Now tell me what you want because I'm losing my patience.”

There's grit in Chaeyoung's voice, reserved only for the most annoying of annoyances. It's seen during times of great distress, this time being she could lose her job and maybe some loss of feeling in her right arm from Dahyun's righteous right hook. 

It's not as if she doesn't want to eat with Mina, but rather she can't nor does she understand the motives of a business executive wanting to talk to someone like her. She's just...Chaeyoung and she's Mina, someone so far away, so out of reach that even being in the same vicinity would cause her to look up and be awestruck for someone so rich and powerful. 

Chaeyoung sees Mina slump her shoulders, the woman’s eyes pleading to her that it needs to be her. It can't be anyone else, not Dahyun or any other human that ever existed. 

And for the first time, Chaeyoung finds herself useful.

//

“I didn't see you here yesterday. I checked,” Jeongyeon comments as she opens the door of the office. “Were you out somewhere? You don't usually go out on Christmas.”

Mina spares Jeongyeon a glance before her head buries itself back into paperwork. It takes a second, the usual amount of time for Mina to answer anything, before she speaks in a low voice, like she's been beaten and left out on the curb for the vultures to eat her.

“I have a headache. I drank too much last night at the bar.”

“You?” Jeongyeon chuckles in mild disbelief. “You Myoui Mina? Drinking in a bar? Not here in your office? But in a bar with real people and live entert-”

“Yes Jeongyeon,” Mina groans, pulling her head back as she rolls her eyes, “I drank in a bar with real people and with a bartender who couldn't tell two shits between whiskey and cognac. I drank in bar with a so called singer whose voice cracked and was drunk from siphoning alcohol from other people's mouths. I drank in a bar with two meatheads that were so drunk out of their minds they ended up kissing each other instead of fighting out in the alley. So if you're going to ask me again to come out drinking with you, no god damn thank you!”

There's a long, drawn out silence before Jeongyeon’s frozen face morphs into one with a smile larger than that of the clown from IT. 

“I didn't think you had it in you,” Jeongyeon quips, patting Mina's back before leaning against the desk. “But why now?” 

Mina bites her lip before she looks up, her eyes glazed over as she stares into Jeongyeon’s eyes. Mina's eyes are filled with pain and the darkness and the memories of one who's tried to take whatever life threw at them. At last, those memories flow out as tears as she remembers every single one of them. 

“You know where I'm from right?” Mina asks.

“From Bronx. I heard the rumors. Are they lies?”

Mina shakes her head and Jeongyeon gives her time to collect her words. This is the first time Mina has shown this kind of emotion, the kind that Jeongyeon has only seen from Nayeon whenever she's having a mental breakdown over the past. All of them have committed mistakes, it's only natural to dwell on them.

“I went there yesterday. Not of my own accord, but I went there. I met some people and they reminded me of...me,” Mina shares before she drops the pen in her hand on to the papers below, forgotten. “I'm not a good person Jeongyeon. I'm terrible.”

“And then what?” 

Mina turns her chair towards Jeongyeon, fully baring herself. 

“I ran, like I always did. I didn't say thank you o-or give them my number to call. I'm a coward a-and I ran away from the people who could understand me better than I could understand myself.”

At this, Jeongyeon holds the two armrests as she leans forward, face close to Mina's, which to the untrained eye looks like they're about to kiss. But no, it's just Jeongyeon finally seeing the true Mina and she wants to look as closely as she can before it disappears. 

Jeongyeon will not pass up this chance to speak to Mina in a civilized manner, one not consisted of veiled insults and rude rejections. She wants this to last forever, but the ice melts only for just a little while until it snows and it hardens once more. 

“If you ever meet any of those people again, take hold and never let go.”

Mina nods, taking in Jeongyeon’s words.

Take hold and never let go.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This was supposed to come out on Thanksgiving as my way of giving thanks for the love, but I sort of ate myself to death and napped and then woke up and left for the mall on a whim. But whatever, here it is. :)

The definition of ‘maybe’ could be explained by Son Chaeyoung, her ambiguous answers frustrating the hell out of everyone that knows her. She doesn’t mean it most of the time; she doesn’t mean to ride along that grey area, refusing to fall into either the black or white pit. It would take just a yes for Mina to smile and a no for Mina to frown. Chaeyoung doesn’t know which she’d like better since both of them would make her uncomfortable. Does Mina even smile much? It’s probably crooked, the disuse of those muscles making that smile rather strained. Although it is rather tempting to see her smile, it would be odd and Chaeyoung would certainly be squirming in her seat if she did see.

So she settles with maybe and gets something in between.

The first thought that comes into Chaeyoung’s mind is, “Oh. So that’s what it looks like.” It’s halfway between a smile and frown, each side of Mina’s mouth turning in a different direction.

The second thought comes into Chaeyoung’s mind is, “Shit, that’s scary,” and then Chaeyoung looks away towards their waiter idling around by the front door podium, eyeing them from across the room if they do need anything. No we don’t, Chaeyoung would love to say, but Chaeyoung also knows that she probably needs a getaway car, preferably a pink lamborghini, since Mina’s deformed expression turns into a full blown scowl, realizing that Chaeyoung’s ‘maybe’ doesn’t make too much sense after all. 

“What do you mean maybe? It’s a straight yes or no question.”

Exactly that’s the problem, Chaeyoung would like to say. It's not that easy. People just don't ask other people if she'd like a job as her personal secretary. People get degrees for that kind of thing, people who actually took business or management or anything other than a stupid art degree that she got and did nothing with.

It's tempting, yes, but at the same time, she doesn't want something she didn't work for. She's gotten this far in life and she's barely hanging on, but she's done this mostly by herself, save for the help of Sana and Dahyun along the way, and she's going to play it out, for pride's sake.

Her dad did tell her she was bad at taking her chances, but her Dad is gone so what did that advice do for him? What did it do for her?

“Mina,” Chaeyoung starts, playing with the straw in her glass, “I'm flattered, but I'm not the right person for the job. I'm sure you'll find someone a lot better than me and a lot less crass than I am.” 

Mina scoffs, crossing her arms, before she says, “I don't want someone qualified. I want someone like you. I want you Chaeyoung. I don't want to ask twice.”

Chaeyoung stops playing with her straw and leans forward on the table, planting her elbows on the table and intertwining her hands before continuing, “You're the richest person I've met. You're mean and you eat my food with a frown on your face like you're eating poison.” She watches as Mina’s brows furrow with the words.

Chaeyoung continues, “You hide what you think and you show up in my life asking me to take a position I am in no way deserving of. If this is some sort of charity case for you, then you've proven my point. If not, then you're doing a shitty job at it.”

Mina freezes, holding that stare, before she looks away, made uncomfortable by Chaeyoung’s unrelenting gaze. It's so familiar; it reminds Mina of so much, so much of her and her past. She remembers the cold nights, tucked away under a blanket that barely covered her feet. She remembers the hungry days, unable to father a few dollars to eat. She remembers the shelters and the people she met there who gave her the little strength she needed to carry on. 

Then she remembers her, her best friend that she left behind, betrayed, stabbed in the back.

Mina closes her eyes, purging her thoughts of the memories, before she opens them again, exhaling heavily as she struggles to breath.

Chaeyoung has lost her patience. She stands, knocking on the wood twice to catch Mina's attention, before she hisses, “Don't show up here again.”

Chaeyoung turns and leaves the restaurant with fast steps, and Mina sees her jog towards the elevator and jab the button several times before it opens a few seconds later.

Mina stares at Chaeyoung, that look of pure defeat that's so ever present in the poor woman’s face glaring back at her. 

Then the elevator closes and she's gone once again.

//

(“What do you mean you don't have the money? It's your daughter for Christ’s sake! Get your fucking ass up or I'll beat the living fuck out of your fucking useless shit of a body!”

Chaeyoung marches over towards the man, grabbing his collar when he refused to even move from his spot, and notches him right on the cheek. Her arm gets taken by Dahyun, who's holding her back from causing anymore damage. She stares at Dahyun for a few seconds before she shrugs her off and releases the man from her grasp. 

“Tzuyu,” Chaeyoung starts as she looks down on the beaten man, “She's my friend and I care a lot about her. Me and Dahyun don't have that money. We're barely hanging on as is.” Chaeyoung crouches down, eye level with him, “But we know you do. You have a job that pays well and actually have your life together.”

Tzuyu’s father is silent, the only sounds from him is the labored breathing from his weak lungs. Still, he manages to say, “I used it all up Chaeyoung. I spent it on that dealer, got me a supply that'll last me my whole life.”

That's when Chaeyoung loses it.)

//

Chaeyoung is no stranger to a jail cell. She hasn't stolen anything, though she admits she was tempted time and time again just to snatch an extra piece of fruit from the grocery store or a toothbrush from the convenience store. But she hasn't, made clear that Dahyun wouldn't want her to. People like them already have enough stigmas, a life of crime just isn't one that they'd like to contribute to.

It's her luck, Chaeyoung figures, that's got her in the wrong positions at the wrong times. 

From a robbery to a murder, she usually finds herself in the midst of it. The police is more than happy to point figures at her first before making any significant findings. Chaeyoung thinks that half the markings in that jail cell at the 41st precinct are hers and the police chief is indifferent whenever she spends the night there. 

It’s like her second home at this point.

The only actually instance where she truly deserved the stay was in her senior year of high school, the man she assaulted more than bruised up. He was mauled, his face unrecognizable, as she sported her own marks around her neck and her shoulders from Dahyun unsuccessfully holding her back. 

Then a year later, after she got out detention center, she finds out that no college really wants to take her, her felony more than enough to stave off potential schools. It was a miracle that she found her place in CUNY. Chaeyoung would love to talk to the admissions office one day to find out the reason why they'd take someone like her.

After all that, well, she's for sure never going to commit another crime. There's already enough hard stuff in her life. And just when she finds an opportunity to rid that in Mina, she somehow had to stupidly throw it away. God, when has she ever been this stupid? She could've paid for all her bills, Dahyun and Sana’s bills, and probably ship the three of them into someplace better, where they're not subject to eating barely three meals a day.

What got in her mind in that moment she said no? 

So, she doesn't tell Dahyun about it, and she's left with a bruise on her right arm as she serves the increasing customers of the bar. 

Hopefully, Dahyun isn't like her and just disappears for half her shift.

It's not like she needs the company, because that person enters through the rooftop door, dressed in layers, with haphazard matches and dirty fabrics, which looks like it was found on the side of the street next a dumpster. Still, this person looks content, at least for the time being, as she marches on over to the counter where Chaeyoung is, effectively surprising the bartender, those eyes bulging at the sight of this new person.

“Hey! What are you doing here? Something up?” Chaeyoung beams, smiling for once today. “I've never seen you round these parts.”

Momo smiles back, taking a seat, looking out of place, made uncomfortable by such a venue such as this. She just looks straight at Chaeyoung because everything else is so foreign, and Chaeyoung is the only constant amidst all the variables in this place. 

Momo observes Chaeyoung, dressed in flannel with a jacket covering the red. Her hair is tied up rather sloppily, as if Chaeyoung didn't have time to look presentable as she ran out of her apartment. There's bags under her eyes, which to Momo is odd, since Chaeyoung always seems to be the type who is punctual. Then Momo notices Chaeyoung doing everything with her left arm, her right one useless as she organizes all the glasses.

“I wanted to see you,” Momo admits, her hands idle on her lap, careful not to touch anything since she might break it. Everything she touches breaks, she always assumes, her senior year of high school solidified that belief. “The shelter made me feel cramped.”

“Did you walk here?” Chaeyoung asks to which Momo nods in response, causing a frown from the bartender. Chaeyoung stops her task of organizing the glasses and pays her full and utmost attention to Momo. “That's miles away Momo. You should've just-”

“I don't have anything to do Chae,” Momo interjects, knowing what Chaeyoung was going to say (“-visited me at the apartment.” Chaeyoung was always too nice for her own good. It must be the bacon, Momo muses.) She sighs before continuing, “I'm already here so just talk to me. You like you need the company. There's barely anyone here anyway.” Momo looks around before turning her attention back to Chaeyoung before saying, “Is it really Christmas season? Usually this would be packed.”

“I think some of our regulars found happiness so it's slow. It's picking up a bit, but it's not much,” Chaeyoung says, still uncomfortable that Momo made the journey all the way to Manhattan. “How bout’ you? Anything interesting at the shelter?”

“The shelter? No, not much,” Momo answers, her eyes drifting behind Chaeyoung, the assortment of alcohol fascinating her. She's never seen such things, only told through Chaeyoung’s stories whenever Chaeyoung comes by to visit. It dawns on her that Chaeyoung is in another league; she could only dream of owning an apartment or having a job like this.

Momo thinks Chaeyoung takes it all for granted, but she doesn't say that.

“There's this girl,” Chaeyoung starts and Momo’s ears perk up. Gossip always managed to have some sort of effect on her, because she knows something others don't, like she matters just for that one second of hushed whispers. “She keeps appearing, making me feel things.”

“Is this that girl from yesterday? The one who skated with you?”

Chaeyoung nods and Momo freezes, hoping to God it isn't who she thinks it is. It's probably not anyway. New York is a big place; a name like Mina is common, even if it's strolling around like a queen in the Bronx. Though she knows that there's always that sliver, that chance that the world could fuck her over again. Far too many times has she spun that wheel and landed on that sliver. 

“Can I meet her one day?” Momo can't believe she's saying this. She must be going crazy. She always told herself not to overstep her boundaries, but if it concerns Chaeyoung, she'd be willing to do everything she can to help her. But she can't lie, she's curious. Whoever this Mina person is, she needs to see her face, hear her voice, and maybe, just maybe, she could mend the wounds dealt by that little woman of seventeen and forgive her. Of course, not before knocking her out with a punch to the face first. 

At this, Chaeyoung stops for a second before she nods, feeling as though there's no harm in letting Momo meet Mina. Even though Chaeyoung's told Mina never to appear before her again, people like Mina are stubborn and would just keep on pressing their luck. Even so, Momo’s a living angel, a softie with legs, a human floaty, harmless and would never even hurt a fly. (Chaeyoung isn't going to lie though, she'd love for Momo to meet someone like Mina and see the combustion that ensues.)

“I think you'll see her soon enough. She's really...per-”

Momo raises a brow at Chaeyoung's behavior before she follows Chaeyoung’s gaze towards the rooftop door. 

“-sistent.”

That’s when Momo loses it.

//

(“Mina,” Momo holds the bars, face peering out from behind them, as her pleading face screams “betrayer!” at Mina’s almost stoic face, flashes of sorrow creeping out between the ice. “What do you mean? Y-You dealt drugs? Why did you never tell me?”

“Because this would happen,” Mina answers, breaking her sight from her best friend and paying attention to the guard behind. He mouths “Five minutes,” before Mina turns her attention back to her best friend (Well Mina would like to still say. After all, Momo did promise right?) “I took my chance Momo,” she says, “I'm leaving that hell hole.”

“But why me?” Momo pleads, to the brink of tears. Her lips quiver as her grip on the bars tighten, the whites on her knuckles showing, and she pushes her face even further out, as if she’ll be able to slip through if she did. Prison makes her feel small. Everyone is mean and unforgiving. She's been here for two days and it feels like hell. People know she wouldn't hurt a fly, right? They'd cut her some slack and everyone would be friends. Please, she pleads in her mind. Please.

“Because if I didn't…” Mina stops, eyes skirting away from Momo’s. She sighs before she continues, “Because if I didn't, you wouldn't mind me leaving. You wouldn't care if I moved on.”

“But we’re friends!”

“Are we really? Huh? After what I've done to you, do you still think we could be friends?”

“Mina,” Momo says, sternly, “One day. We’re going to meet again, and we’re going to be friends. There will be scars, yes, but we’ll get through it together, if you let it. It’s up to you.”

“What makes you think I’ll come back?”

“Because you’ll remember and you’ll be curious and you’ll feel sad. You’ll yearn for my company, because I know you and you’ll be alone. You’ll be some rich person with no one by her side and you’ll think back on the times that you did. You’re going to find yourself back here, with me, and we’ll find ourselves again.”

“You’re too nice for your own good, Momo.” Mina looks fondly at Momo, as if this the last time she’ll be able to see her best friend. “Five years, huh?” Mina tries to make small talk. “I’m sorry.”

Momo smiles. “Next time you meet me, buy me some kebabs alright?”)

//

“Dahyun?” Chaeyoung presses the flip phone against her ear. “Yeah, I need you to pick me up. The station, yeah. The 41st, the usual. No, I didn’t do anything this time, at least not yet anyway. Okay, I’ll see you.”

Chaeyoung closes her phone and stuffs it in her pocket, next to the bottle of ice tea she got from the vending machine inside the precinct. She’s spent more than she should’ve today, but she really needs it or she wouldn’t be able to get through the shit she’s been through today. This Christmas, she amusingly looks back at everything that’s happened, has been eventful, starting with her pick up of Mina two nights ago. 

Chaeyoung takes out the ice tea from her pocket and opens it, glugging it loudly that the person sitting on the steps beside her gets annoyed. Mina is holding an ice pack against her face, pressing it lightly against the large bruise on her right cheek, when she says, “Can you stop that? You’re fucking annoying.”

“Can you stop that? You’re being fucking vulgar,”Chaeyoung retorts before drinking her ice tea even more loudly and more annoying than before. She stops before she closes the bottle and turns her attention to Mina, whose frown never left her face ever since she got out of the station. She pleaded the officer to let Momo go. It took some convincing, but the officer probably saw Mina’s purse and thought he shouldn’t get in a mess with her. Afterwards, well, Momo needed some time to cool down and so she gave a curt nod before heading towards the shelter. “I never thought you lived in the Bronx. Why’d you never tell me?”

“You never asked.”

“So you’re that type, huh? Okay, let’s play your game.” Chaeyoung pushes off the wall and turns parallel to Mina. “What got Momo worked up? If she knows you that well to punch you, then you must also know she would never punch anyone. That girl’s an angel.”

“That’s between me and her,” Mina hisses. “I don’t know you well enough to tell you my life story. So fuck off.”

“You’re a fucking work of art, aren’t you? Whatever you did, I can’t believe you’d do it to Momo. That’s fucked up and you know it.”

Mina freezes before she stands, “It was a mistake coming to you. I should’ve known better.”

Mina doesn’t understand. She doesn’t know how this, whatever this mess she’s gotten herself into, will work out. Everything is hazy, the future blurry and she can’t see what’s ahead. She should’ve just stayed in the office, and she shouldn’t have listened to Jeongyeon. Jeongyeon is so...she’s so...nice. She reminds her of Momo. Maybe that’s why she always feels somewhat bad whenever Jeongyeon invites her for some drinks or something. But Jeongyeon is Jeongyeon and Momo is Momo, and they’re two worlds apart.

Whatever Jeongyeon said, though, it’s something Momo would say and that scares her.

“Hey,” Chaeyoung calls out as Mina is about to leave. Mina turns back with a furrow in her brow, listening to Chaeyoung for one last time before she goes. Chaeyoung has her hands in her pockets, and Mina’s face turns soft. Chaeyoung is her from before, before everything happened with Momo and all that. What happened to her? When did she become such a monster?

“What is it?” Mina manages to say, harshly, trying to keep up her facade. “Tell me quick.”

Chaeyoung smirks. Mina is such a character. How is she able to keep this mask that she has on for so long? No one is this heartless, but Chaeyoung has been wrong far too many times before. 

“Momo isn’t qualified in any way. She’s living in a shelter and her days consist of bumming around and asking for scraps. She has it worse than both of us, so if you really need somebody, ask her. I can handle myself.”

Mina closes her eyes, exhaling all the stress from her body. Should she? Another risk? No, she shouldn’t. Not again. Mina doesn’t want to do this anymore. She wants to go back to that time whenever things weren’t so complicated. It was boring, but it was safe and she could think clearly. But what if? And that haunts Mina more than she wants. 

So she settles with the in between.

“Maybe.”


	6. Chapter 6

Her name was Tzuyu — quite tall, black haired, with cat-like eyes. She looked very oriental looking, almost like she lived her whole life back in Taiwan (where she was from) and just landed from JFK airport just yesterday. But it wasn't her beauty (not to downplay such attractiveness) that enamored Chaeyoung first, it was that innocence — that uncaring, free-flying innocence that took her and many others by the collar and forced them to look at her.

 

Tzuyu, as Chaeyoung recalls, flew, in more ways than one.

 

Chaeyoung finds herself walking, a bouquet in her hand, on that concrete path surrounded by snow. She managed to conjure up enough change, found in the deep recesses of her cabinets and the couch in the living room, to buy these flowers. She spent too much of her savings on useless things like kebabs and ice tea. She's too far gone for those kinds of things now.

 

This bouquet feels heavy, heavier than last year for sure, and she hopes the caretaker finds them beautiful, because Tzuyu wouldn't be able to see the beauty of the red roses.

 

She's too far gone for that.

 

“Hey,” Chaeyoung greets, her feet planted parallel to the slab of stone in front of her. It's small; Dahyun and her couldn't afford a bigger one. But they told each other to imagine it grand, since they both know Tzuyu deserved such grand things. She deserved the world, in fact. It's a shame the world didn't deem her deserving enough for them.

 

“I heard Dahyun visited you,” Chaeyoung continues as she sets down the bouquet. She sits along with it, legs folded, and her hands lie idle on her lap, save for the occasional tapping she does when she gets antsy. The snow crunches from under her, and she feels her coat get damp. “I hope she didn't say anything stupid. Oh what am I saying? Of course she did.”

 

Chaeyoung smiles slightly, feeling like a fool who's talking to herself, but that's fine. She's glad to play the fool if it's for Tzuyu. “It's been a hard year again,” she admits. “The rent went up twice this year. Remember Solar? She's still a bitch.”

 

Then she sees that inscription carved into that stone slab. It's what Tzuyu always said. In whatever she did, Tzuyu always found solace in those words, even if everything around her was crumbling. She sees it every year. Why does it feel so wrong to see it now?

 

Chaeyoung stops. It doesn't feel right. This doesn't feel right. She's been doing this for nine years already. Nine years. Every Christmas season seated just like this. But this year, she just doesn't feel what she used to. She told herself she wouldn't forget about Tzuyu, when she becomes indifferent and Tzuyu is just a memory that she taps into for nostalgia. But Tzuyu feels so far away now, and Chaeyoung just can't reach out and touch her, hug her, and see that smile.

 

“I can't do this,” Chaeyoung sighs out, pushing herself up from the ground. She pats the snow from her behind and with confused steps, heads out, baffling the caretaker at the house, who usually observes her fondly since Chaeyoung usually greets and says goodbye whenever she visits. Chaeyoung’s mind is muddled with that inscription, holding that promise she made for Tzuyu to put it on there when she goes.

 

Chaeyoung doesn't dare look back, because she knows her camera-like eyes would focus on it all too easily.

 

But it's stuck in her mind like a mantra.

 

“Take hold and never let go.”

 

But Chaeyoung wants to so bad.

 

//

 

“Here,” Mina says, pushing the container full of kebabs towards Momo. “I promised you them when we met again, but you gave me something instead,” Mina teases, referring to the bruise on her cheek. When Momo ignores the kebabs, Mina sets it down between the both of them as Mina takes a seat on the floor. There’s quiet murmurs in the distance, towards the lobby of the shelter, and Mina drowns herself in them, the awkwardness between her and Momo killing her inside.

 

It wasn't always like this. Mina would be laughing her stomach off as Momo made another dumb joke at this point, but now they sit, one regretful and one resentful, on this shelter floor with unspoken words and mixed feelings.

 

It might have been an hour or it might have been just a few minutes, but Momo finally says something. It pricks Mina’s ears and she darts her head towards her (former) best friend.

 

“You took my future away from me.”

 

Mina sucks in her breath, the words hitting deep. Mina knows those words rang true in every sense. Momo was, in fact, very active. Everywhere Momo went, she found her place. From cheerleading to the dance club at school, she had friends and teachers that counted on her, looked up to her for guidance. She was touted even to become the valedictorian, save for the grades part, but the whole student body was behind the idea, even the real valedictorian. When the news broke out, the school became silent, the final few months of senior year dull and there always seemed to be the question in the air of “What if?”

 

What if she’s here? What if she didn’t do it? What if? What if? What if?

 

Mina wanted to cut her ears off when she heard the murmurs, the rumours that involved Momo, the rumours that involved her to Momo. It became too much to bear, and she almost snitched on herself, but the damage was already done and she took her money and ran.

 

Bitter isn’t enough to describe what Momo is feeling right now.

 

And sorry isn’t enough for what Mina did.

 

Yet it’s all Mina could say.

 

“I’m sorry.” Mina sits frozen as she stares blankly off into the distance. Her eyes catch a few figures walking, but they never really focus. She doesn't remember when she developed this habit of staring into nothing, like she's blind and she's lost her way. Maybe it's something she did, she doesn't know.

 

Over the years, Mina hates to admit, she changed for the worse. Her already cold exterior became even more pronounced with her behavior. She was shy then and she didn’t go out much, except for the times Momo led her by the hand to some parties that Momo was invited to. (Even then, she found herself leaving early, knowing that the next day she needed to work the early shift to help with the rent money.) But Mina knows she needs to keep this facade, this grit and this dagger-like exterior that she's so used to by now. She doesn't want to return to her former self, because then that means she needs a Momo, someone to keep her afloat, and she doesn't have that anymore, not yet at least.

 

After all this, Mina wants a drink, her whiskey bottle in her office desk would do. Maybe something harder so she could forget this. Malt liquor? White vodka? She could probably get some Bacardi 151 Rum if she really wanted to lose herself. Jesus, she needs to stop with this drinking every time this happens, every time anything that involves Momo comes up.

 

“You know Ms. Myoui.” Mina winces from how Momo referred to her as. She guesses she deserves it after what she’s done. After all, Momo doesn’t have to keep that promise she made. Mina would be a fool if she thought Momo would. “I lost years off of my life. I had to join a gang in prison to survive.” Momo rolls up her sleeve and brandishes a skull on her forearm, effectively shocking Mina, before she rolls it back. Mina's mouth is agape. Momo in a gang? Those two words don't belong in the same sentence that doesn't say ’Momo will never be a part of a gang’ (or any iteration of that).

 

Momo continues, “I couldn’t find a job when I got out because no one wanted a drug dealer. Which is funny because I don’t even know how this whole drug-dealing thing works. Suppose that’s what I get for being friends with one, huh? Especially one that framed me so she could leave scott free without a trail.”

 

“Momo I-”

 

“Who was it?” Momo interrupts, waving off any attempts for Mina to speak. “Someone I know? Someone from our street?”

 

Mina’s eyes shift before they settle into place, looking at Momo. “It was two blocks away. A Mr. Chou.”

 

Momo scoffs, throwing her head back into the wall as she chuckles lightly. “So a Mr. Chou got you off the hook. He must've been well off to set you up.” Momo's eyes furrow at a realization and then she sits up. “Wait, Mr. Chou? The guy with the-”

 

“Daughter with cancer? Yeah, that Mr. Chou.” Mina sighs and rests her head on the wall. “I didn't know it was him until it was done.”

 

“What happened to her?”

 

“What do you think? They couldn't pay for the treatment. It was pretty strange though. She was oddly optimistic about the whole thing.”

 

“That makes two of us,” Momo sighs out. “So not only did you ruin my future, you killed off all hopes of another one. Good job Myoui, you fucking did it. How's the yacht? The bling bling? You probably eat lobsters all day and fucking go to the groceries and buy kale and shit. I can't believe you.”

 

Mina’s lips quiver and she bites them in response to stop. Being around Momo like this, being around Momo in general, it makes her weaker. It takes her back to when she was seven and Momo was eight and Momo would fend off the bullies on the playground swings that threw rocks at her. She's hates how she was — a cowardly person, but Momo's the only one who could make her think this way. Momo makes her feel like a young kid, and Mina doesn't know how to stop it without pushing Momo away again. She doesn't want to push her away ever again.

 

“How'd you get it?” Momo asks, palming the styrofoam container full of kebabs and setting it down on her lap. If there's one thing about Momo that Mina knows is true, it's that leaving food in a ten feet radius around her is one way to get her to eat.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“The kebabs. Jesus Mina, you’re still like this. Of course I meant the drugs.”

 

“Oh,” Mina mutters before her voice rises in volume, “They've got a lab next to the 41st. Ironic, I know, but who'd ever check next to a police station?”

 

“Huh…” Momo pouts her lip, deep in thought. She stops trying to open the styrofoam container and relaxes. The 41st precinct reminds her of somebody. “You know Chaeyoung likes you right?”

 

At this, Mina looks over in incredulity but chuckles lightly soon after. Momo’s joking again. It only takes a few seconds of silence that Momo was, in fact, not joking about this whole ordeal. Frowning, Mina asks flustered, “Wait, what? Chaeyoung? That rude little runt that took me in? How could she ever possibly like me? She’s a bitch.”

 

Momo smiles slightly at Mina’s tiny rant. She finally opens the styrofoam container and uses her plastic fork to stab a piece of meat into her mouth. “You know she said the same exact thing about you,” Momo comments.

 

“What? What do you mean?”

 

Another piece of meat is consumed before Momo continues even further, “Rude rich bitch. Her words, not mine, but I can’t say they aren’t entirely lies nowadays.”

 

Mina purses her lips at Momo’s unsubtle insult. Yeah, she deserves it. She deserves everything that Momo is throwing her way right now. But it doesn’t mean she isn’t hurt by it, so she tries to deflect the subject into something else (even if it’s not that much better).

 

“How do you know? She hasn’t been the nicest to me either.”

 

Momo points her fork stabbed with some lamb at Mina when she says, “You. Are. Stupid. Myoui. Mina,” then she puts the lamb into her mouth and continues eating. “That girl is one of the nicest human beings I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. If she was mean, then you must’ve done something wrong, which I don’t really count out at this point.”

 

Momo takes a second to swallow before she continues, “Be a little nicer the next time you meet her. Choose your words carefully and maybe you’ll see her true self.” Momo pauses, thinking about Chaeyoung even more.

 

“Didn’t she take you in a few days ago? She told me you were throwing up on the side of the street and carried you all the way to her apartment. Don’t you know how far that is? That’s like forty minutes walking and taking the train. She already has no money and she bought both of you tickets. Do you not see it?”

 

Mina opens her mouth to speak, but closes it soon after, not able to find her words after what Momo just said. It never occurred to her that Chaeyoung is this altruistic. She’s so caught up in her own problems and her selfishness overshadowed Chaeyoung’s actions.

 

After seeing Mina open and close her mouth like a fish a few times, Momo takes initiative.

 

“She likes you. A lot. I see it. I’m no idiot. Anyone who has eyes could see it. And what? I’ve only seen you guys for at most two hours? The tension is real Mina. Deal with it; it’s true.”

 

Mina freezes at the realization, her eyes settling in on an empty wall and her blank stare burns holes through it. Chaeyoung’s nice and all, but they’re opposites and while people say opposites attract, they would, in fact, get into too many fights for it to be a healthy relationship.

 

Mina has a list. She likes her clothes folded and neatly tucked into her closet and she saw Chaeyoung’s haphazard closet when she was in that bartender’s apartment. She has a covering for her toothbrush while Chaeyoung’s toothbrush was in the sink next to the drain, amassing all sorts of germs. Chaeyoung likes skating in dangerous places while she doesn’t skate at all.

 

She is rich and Chaeyoung is poor.

 

And she knows Chaeyoung hates getting handouts she doesn’t deserve.

 

They don’t mesh and Mina knows it.

 

“Enough,” Mina asserts, catching the attention of Momo, “This isn’t what I came here for. I had something else to talk about.”

 

“What else is there to talk about?” Momo asks, her food-filled mouth muffling her voice. She sets the styrofoam container along with her plastic fork on top down to the ground, wiping her mouth using her sleeve, which in turn stained it. It annoys Mina, but she’s too far gone to be worrying about stuff like that right now.

 

Mina squares herself to Momo and takes a deep breath. They stare at each other, Mina’s eyes determined while Momo’s confused. This time, Mina doesn’t hesitate to speak.

 

“I’m offering you a job. One hundred fifty thousand a year as my secretary,” Mina says. She loses her courage as she sighs out, as if it blew along with it. “It was Chaeyoung’s idea, but I’m not opposed to it. I just want to offer it to you as a sign of peace, an apology.”

 

Momo stares blankly at her, eyes settling in at the bridge of Mina’s nose and between Mina’s eyes. Her brain hasn’t been this muddled in such a long while. When she went to prison, her mind cleared out, replaced by only the hope that one day she’ll get out of that hellish place and meet Mina again. Meeting her best friend like this though, too much information, revelations, and truths are being presented to her, and she needs to take her time to soak it all in before she acts on it.

 

Momo speaks. “Me as your secretary…what do I need to do?”

 

And for the first time in a long while, Mina smiles.

 

//

 

(Pale face, pale lips, pale eyes. Tzuyu looks like white death washed over her, coating her with angel dust before she flies up into heaven. She stares at the figure on the foot of her bed, her friend close to tears and about to burst. Chaeyoung was always the sentimental sort.

 

“No?” Tzuyu asks even if she already knew the answer.

 

Chaeyoung shakes her head and sinks to her knees, her face buried in her hands as sobs wrack her body, feelings of uselessness welling up inside her.

 

Tzuyu looks on with a frown before she speaks once more.

 

“It’s alright Chae. You tried your best.”

 

Chaeyoung shakes her head, still crying, before she looks up from her hands.

 

“No, I should’ve tried even harder. I need to find you the-”

 

“It’s over Chae. You can rest now,” Tzuyu interrupts, her heart breaking at the sight.

 

A few minutes pass before Chaeyoung stands, her tear-soaked eyes in full display. She moves closer to Tzuyu’s side, taking the edge of the bed, before she takes Tzuyu’s limp hand in hers and thumbs over the back of it, providing at least a little comfort.

 

“Have you given up?” Chaeyoung asks, trying to keep her voice still. It’s getting harder and harder to keep it together in front of Tzuyu.

 

Tzuyu shakes her head before she smiles, peace spreading throughout her mind and body.

 

“My dad was always stupid but he’s my dad. He’s fighting his own demons and I’m fighting mine.”

 

“I beat some sense into him,” Chaeyoung comments, the tears slowing down the flow from her eyes as she speaks. “Then you know what happened after.”

 

Tzuyu chuckles as she shakes her head in amusement.

 

“I can’t believe you went to a detention center. You’re so stupid.”

 

Tzuyu breathes heavily for a few moments, worrying Chaeyoung, but it soon settles into a low drum. Afterwards, they settle into a comfortable silence. No words need to be exchanged, just staring. They seem to be able to tell what the other one is thinking just through their eyes, so they make no effort to talk.

 

That is, until Tzuyu breaks the silence.

 

“We’ve dated for a few years now and we were friends for years before that. These were the best years of my life. I just want you to know that you need to move on. Tell Dahyun the same thing too.”

 

Tzuyu is too sweet. Chaeyoung doesn’t understand why the world just wants to rid her from itself. She’s done nothing wrong. The worst thing that Chaeyoung could ever think of was that time when they skipped school to eat some ice cream at the park, where they were unceremoniously chased out by some druggies that had their fix. Those were better times.

 

“Take hold and never let go,” Tzuyu continues, her lips becoming chapped. “Put it on my stone.”

 

Chaeyoung nods, her head dripping low. The tears come rushing back and she takes a hand off Tzuyu’s to wipe her eyes with the back of it. She sniffles and she bites her lip from quivering too much.

 

“Rest easy Tzuyu. I’ll look up and smile at you everyday.”

 

Tzuyu nods.

 

“Live yours well. I’ll go first.” )


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am free from finals. Rejoice with me.

Mina finds Momo next to the Hudson shore, kicking away at the stones as she strolls along. It’s late but Mina didn’t find Momo at the shelter, and there is only one place where Momo would go at a night like this, cold and lightly snowing.

 

Momo always said looking at the moon helps her think better, because it’s up there and it doesn’t care what anyone else thinks about it. Mina once asked why she didn’t like the sun that much then, and Momo said that she can’t look at the sun like she looks at the moon. It's too bright.

 

Momo is bundled up in layers once again, wearing an old coat she’s owned for several years now, back when she was still in her parent’s house, content with how her life is going. Her shoes are dried with mud, sticking between the gaps on the bottom. At first, it threw her off from the imbalance, but she learned how to get used to it, like she's learned how to get used to a lot of things once she didn't have money. Momo guesses Mina had to get used to a lot of things too when Mina did get money.

 

With Mina, there came the memories rushing back, like a stampede raging, uncaring of how it might've affected her. It's the old gifts, the late night phone calls, and the after school excursion to the swings at the park. Then came the police and then the bars and the skull on her forearm. Everything. Every little tiny bit reminds Momo of Mina.

 

Once, Momo thought Mina could be forgotten, but she was naive then and once slight glance changed everything. The dam gates broke and now everything's flooded with confusion.

 

Momo is plainly confused.

 

“Steel toed boots,” Mina starts, catching Momo’s attention, who looks up and puts on a tight-lipped smile. Mina is holding a shoebox wrapped and sealed with a bow, which Momo guesses are a pair that are for her. “I know it's not Christmas but I wanted to get you something.” Mina pauses when Momo doesn't speak. “For an old friend,” Mina reasons as she turns even more skittish than she is at Momo’s silence.

 

Mina holds out the box to Momo, but Momo just stares at the box, unsure of how to act.

 

“I don't have anything for you,” Momo replies, her eyes still fixated on the box.

 

“It's called a gift for a reason,” Mina says. “It requires nothing.”

 

Momo takes a moment to stare at Mina, finding her eyes and gauging what she’s really thinking. Most of the time she’s able to figure it out, since Mina has the most expressive eyes. Only people who know Mina knows she shows the most emotion without really showing it. Momo frowns at the fact that she can’t say the same — since she wears her heart on her sleeve and everyone knows what she’s thinking.

 

“Fine,” Momo mutters, taking the shoebox swiftly out of Mina’s hands. She doesn’t rip it open, trusting Mina gave what she said she gave, since Mina doesn’t have anything to gain, but everything to lose. Mina’s courting her, in a platonic friend kind of way. Honestly, Momo finds it cute and refreshing, since back then Mina didn’t really do these kinds of gestures, like giving gifts or anything like that.

 

“Now tell me why you’re really here,” Momo urges, not buying the fact that Mina would go to such lengths to find her next to the Hudson. “This-,” Momo emphasizes the shoebox, “-definitely isn’t what’s on your mind. Are you looking for your answer?”

 

Mina nods when she says, “I just want to fix the mess I made.”

 

Mina hurt her, that much is true, and there are no rules in life that states that Mina can't just show up on a snowy winter day a few years later and beg for forgiveness. As much as Momo hates it, Momo wants to entertain her, even if it's just a short while before Mina manages to hurt her again, and she won't be the least bit surprised when she does, because Momo knows she will, because the Mina from back then and the Mina she sees now are one in the same.

 

Yet why is Momo still in front of her?

 

“The answer is yes.”

 

Momo hates how she’s a masochist.

 

//

 

It's Sana who answers, a smile on her face as she opens the door wider for Chaeyoung to slip in. She's wearing the furry sweater Dahyun knitted for her a few years back and the small, but comfy slippers that Chaeyoung had given her two years ago when Sana complained about having to walk around on the cold, hardwood floors of their apartment. Just looking at her makes Chaeyoung feel warmer than she already is with her jacket, since Sana always seems to radiate such warmth effortlessly with that smile of hers.

 

“Come in. Momo’s here,” Sana informs before Chaeyoung nods and heads in. Sana closes the door after with a soft thud before locking it. She joins Chaeyoung and leads her to the living room, but not without giving her a warning. “She’s a little shook. She met Mina tonight.”

 

At the information, Chaeyoung slows her steps, a little hesitant in going to talk to Momo, but it’s Momo and she shouldn’t have any worries. Momo has to be one of the easiest people to talk to, because Momo doesn’t mind much, since everything terrible happened to her in one way or another already.

 

When Chaeyoung enters the living room, she finds Momo sitting on the couch, a cup of hot cocoa in her hand while a small blanket is draped over her shoulders. She looks frigid, her shivering hands not seemingly able to be warmed by the warm cup. Momo glances up and a smile instantly forms on her face and then her hands stop shivering, as if the sight of Chaeyoung is enough to fill her up with warmth.

 

“Hey,” Momo greets, her voice a little hoarse. Maybe because she’s been out in the cold for a while, Chaeyoung muses, but her thoughts get cut off by Momo standing, the blanket slipping off when she does and it falls on the couch. Momo sets the cup of cocoa down before taking a few steps to engulf Chaeyoung in a tight hug.

 

“What’s with the hug?” Chaeyoung asks, but she encircles her arms around Momo’s waist anyway.

 

“It’s been a long time,” Momo mutters into Chaeyoung’s shoulder. “I’m going to have a home.”

 

Chaeyoung smiles at the information, knowing exactly what happened.

 

“By yourself or wit-”

 

“Mina,” Momo says, breaking away from the hug but she keeps her hands on Chaeyoung’s shoulders. “She’s going to keep me until I find my own home. It's going to be soon though. The salary...it's more than I need.”

 

“You’ll do well,” Chaeyoung assures her before she turns her head back to Sana, whose fond eyes looks at their interaction with a slight smile. “She’ll do well won't she?”

 

“If she's like anything when we play cards, then she’ll do alright.”

 

Chaeyoung chuckles as she turns back, “See? If Sana thinks so, then it must be true.”

 

Momo looks down shyly at her feet before she rests her hands back to her side. She gestures with her head to Chaeyoung and Sana to the couch and all of them take their seats, Momo in the middle while the other two flank her sides.

 

The (former homeless) woman visits every year around Christmas time, spending some time with the group of three, before taking her leave back to the shelter, content with having gifts such as socks or some hand-me-down shirts. It doesn’t take much for Momo to be happy. She’s grateful for anything she gets. To think that she’ll have this much money in a short while, it’s surreal — like a dream she never thought she’d ever dream. Hopefully, she never wakes up or watch it turn into a nightmare.

 

“If you were wondering, Dahyun’s getting us some snacks,” Sana informs as she takes Momo’s hands in her own. “She’ll be back soon,” she finishes.

 

Chaeyoung nods before shifting her attention to Momo in the middle, who’s eyeing her with such a sly smile that it’s starting to creep her out. Usually, Momo would be like this if she has something devious planned in her mind, like some sort of prank Dahyun and her love doing, like stealing some bacon from her fridge like last year when they came to visit her house. Needless to say, Chaeyoung doesn’t like it one bit, but it’s not like she can just stop Momo.

 

She should expect this sort of behavior.

 

“So...Mina huh?” Momo starts and Chaeyoung instantly regrets at that moment ever stepping into this home.

 

“Please Momo. Not this again. I already told you me and Mina aren’t like that,” Chaeyoung groans out, a scrunch on her nose as she stares tiredly at her friend. “Besides, she's so busy with work that she won't even have time to date.”

 

Chaeyoung looks down at her lap when she mutters out a small, “And who'd want to date me?...” which is followed by an immediate slap on her thigh. She winces from the collision and she glances up at the culprit, Sana, whose frown details her provocation.

 

“Don’t you say that. You’re amazing and you know it. You try your hardest in everything and if you fail, you get back up, pat the dust off yourself, and keep on walking. I don’t know how many people can say the same thing,” Sana rants, huffing as she’s being calmed down by Momo’s comforting pats on her lap.

 

“There there Sana. I’m sure Chaeyoung’s just wondering how someone like Mina could ever like a girl like her. Mina has her head stuck too far up her ass and Chaeyoung’s an angel. It’s like the fucking Devil trying to sex up God or something. It doesn’t seem plausible at all.”

 

Chaeyoung chuckles at Momo’s joke, throwing her head back as she lets out a loud guffaw.

 

“What have you been watching in that place Momo?” Chaeyoung asks in incredulity before Momo raises her hands in her defense.

 

“The Playboy channel came up, okay? Wheel of Fortune wasn’t on so what else was I going to watch?”

 

“I don’t know? Anything other than porn?”

 

“Shut up Chaeyoung. You’re a fucking desert down there. Of course you’d say that.”

 

Chaeyoung slaps Momo on the arm, scrunching her nose up in annoyance before swinging out of the couch. Momo looks up towards Chaeyoung with a furrow in her brow before slowly getting up also, making even Sana stand. Momo follows Chaeyoung’s eyes that are trained on her before Chaeyoung turns her head and nods towards the door.

 

“What are you doing?” Momo asks, staring at the door also.

 

“Dahyun’s coming through that door in twenty seconds. When she opens that door, we’re going to Manhattan. We’re at seventeen right now so get on your jacket because I’m gonna leave without you if you don’t.”

 

When Chaeyoung turns to get put on her shoes, Momo knows Chaeyoung’s actually serious, prompting Sana to do the same. They rush hurriedly to the closet and pull out their own clothing on the hangers before heading towards the door to put on their shoes. When the door opens and Dahyun is smiling as she’s carrying the plastic bags carrying their snacks, Chaeyoung pats the oblivious woman on the shoulder two times before heading out, the sounds of ‘wait up’ and ‘don’t leave just yet’ chiming in from behind.

 

“Wait what’s ha-”

 

“Chaeyoung’s going fucking crazy!” Momo yells as she runs towards the exit stairs with Sana close in tow.

 

Dahyun watches them run before groaning out loud and following after them, knowing that whenever Chaeyoung just leaves without a single word, there’s something going on in that idiot’s mind.

 

“The fuck is going on?”

 

//

 

“Where are we going?” Momo asks, her hand grasping Chaeyoung’s arm while her other one is holding the railing to keep steady. She scans the subway car, several characters splayed out across the premises. There’s a man sleeping on the floor with a blanket over his face and his face only while another guy is playing a guitar right beside him. There’s also a girl close to their age trying to balance without holding on to anything with just her heels on. Unfortunately, the girl is drunk out of her mind and after just a few seconds after the the train starts, she falls and lies on the floor unconscious.

 

“I’ve already told you. Manhattan.”

 

Momo squeezes Chaeyoung’s arm when she says, “You know that’s not what I meant. Where in the hell would you go in Manhattan? Sana and Dahyun over there are worried sick.”

 

Chaeyoung sees how her two friends are sitting while they look worriedly at her. She tries not to let it affect her, since her friends always seem to understand what’s going on, but this time they don’t so they must be worried sick. They should know, Dahyun thinks, but it doesn’t make sense to tell them now that they’re so close. They’ll just see when they get there. Besides, Chaeyoung thinks they’d like the view from a skyscraper.

 

“You’ll see when you see.”

 

When the doors open for their stop, Chaeyoung tucks her hands into her pockets as she steps out of the subway car. She turns her head right and then to her left before heading to the right again. She walks with hurried steps, the three oblivious characters following closely behind.

 

There’s a rush of cold wind when they emerge from the underground and they’re met with a sparse amount of people, a sight they’re not used to seeing, since they’ve always been in the city only during the day time for work, when there’s tourists and many more people around. But right now, it’s two a.m. so of course it’d be like this. They just didn’t expect it to be this barren.

 

“This way,” Chaeyoung says.

 

The others don’t even bother asking Chaeyoung their destination since there must be a reason she’s bringing them this far at this time and at this place. Chaeyoung always hated these types of places. The places which seem like a nesting ground for pretentious, callous upstarts who think they’ve got everything cause they have money.

 

It doesn’t take long for the three to figure out where Chaeyoung’s taken them, since it seems as though there’s only one plausible reason why they’re here.

 

“We’re meeting Mina, aren’t we?” Dahyun asks as they step in the building.

 

Chaeyoung’s silence confirms it.

 

“Momo it’s your turn,” Chaeyoung asserts, pushing Momo towards the front desk, the receptionist looking up from her computer to pay them attention.

 

“What can I get for you?”

 

Momo understands as she pulls out a card Mina gave her earlier tonight after she accepted the job offer. It must’ve been for cases like this, although Mina probably didn't account for somebody losing their mind and coming to a building this late at night.

 

“Ah. Yes. Ms. Myoui told me of your employment,” the receptionist determines before glancing behind Momo to the three poor people behind.

 

“They’re with me.”

 

The receptionist nods before typing in her computer. They wait at the desk until the receptionist jolts them from their languidness.

 

The receptionist gestures over to their right where a bunch of machines stand intimidating. “You can enter through those scanners. Your office is on the thirty fourth floor. Ms. Myoui is still present there so I’m sure she can take care of you.”

 

Momo gives a small thanks before she turns around only to see Chaeyoung smiling that it actually worked.

 

“Oh shut the fuck up and get up there already. We’ll be waiting down here for you.”

 

“Don’t you want to see what it looks like?”

 

Dahyun puts a hand on her shoulder before flashing a smile at her, one that makes her weak in the knees. It’s through Dahyun’s eyes that Chaeyoung finds that she needs to this alone, without anyone’s help, because no one can give any help with what she’s going to do.

 

For once in her life, she’s going to be selfish.

 

//

 

When the elevator dings, Chaeyoung jolts from her focused stare on the door, effectively making her even more jittery than she already is. She won’t lie; this is probably the stupidest thing she’s ever done in her life. But she has nothing to lose, so it doesn’t feel all too bad, though she wishes she has more to lose so she can have an excuse to not do this.

 

Then the door opens and she’s stuck in her spot, staring at the darkness in front of her. She can see a tiny speck of light off in the far corner, probably where Mina’s office is, but she doesn’t move and only holds her breath. When the elevator starts to close, that’s when she moves forward to hold it open.

 

She exhales before shaking her head in disbelief before heading towards that speck of light in the distance, like she’s going up to heaven. With each step, her heart grows heavier and the nervousness that is welling up inside becomes even more amplified.

 

When she reaches the door, she sees Mina inside, speaking to a fairly tall woman, oblivious to her guest outside.

 

“Did you just say your best friend?”

 

Mina nods before speaking, “Yeah my best friend. Don’t look so surprised.” Mina turns back to her work on her desk. “I’ve to get this done. Enjoy going to that bar with Nayeon.”

 

“Nayeon’s home already. Don’t you know the time?”

 

At this Mina looks up, spotting that it’s two in the morning, before scoffing at how time just passes by so quickly. She didn’t even get much done these past few hours. It must be how Momo and that idiot Chaeyoung has been on her mind this whole time. It’s affecting her work.

 

“I’m not going to tell you to stop working because it hasn’t worked for years already. I just want you to know that you’re going to be stuck here when we’re all old, working away on stupid financial reports while everyone is with their families and their kids. If I see you like this in twenty years, I’m gonna punch you in the face. It’s time to take your foot off the gas pedal now. You did well.”

 

Mina is about to retort before her words are caught in mouth and she can’t speak what’s on her mind. She frowns. This used to be so easy, rebutting everything Jeongyeon says, telling her that she needs to mind her own business and that it doesn’t matter if she’s gonna be alone.

 

Then her mind wanders towards Momo and then to that girl Chaeyoung and then everything gets all jumbled up in her mind. So she shakes her head, saying a quick, “Yeah, whatever,” before she turns back to her work, leaving Jeongyeon nodding with tight lips before heading out to leave..

 

Jeongyeon reaches halfway when she notices that fair skinned girl peering in from the crack of the door, who immediately panics and tries to escape the tall woman’s eyes. It's then that Jeongyeon snaps the door open and grabs Chaeyoung by the collar before yanking her back.

 

“How'd you get in here?” Jeongyeon questions, her voice stern and intimidating. Mina notices the commotion outside her office so she stands, setting her pen down the desk, before calmly making her way out to see what's going on. There she sees Chaeyoung, red in the face, a little more than flustered that she got caught sneaking around her workplace.

 

Mina should be surprised, but these days surprises come in droves so she just shrugs before saying, “Let her go. I invited her.”

 

A raised brow colors Jeongyeon’s face before she lets Chaeyoung go with a light push, “Don’t eavesdrop on other people’s conversations.”

 

Chaeyoung nods her head, fixing her disheveled collar, as she says, “Right, sorry. I-I uh-nevermind”

 

Jeongyeon gives one final knowing look towards Mina before walking to the elevator. Mina sighs when she sees the elevator light nonexistent through those metal doors, and she gestures with her head to her office, not bothering to ask just yet what Chaeyoung's business is.

 

It’s when Mina slams the door closed that Chaeyoung gulps, uncomfortable with how Mina’s carrying herself at the moment. It’s also when Mina decides to speak, her voice nonchalant but still carrying strength, that Chaeyoung feels a cold sweat run down the side of her face.

 

“Did Momo send you?” Mina asks, sitting down on her chair as she looks over the papers strewn all across her desk. “She seemed a bit jittery when I left. I didn’t know if it was from the cold or from me, but seeing you here I think I got my answer.”

 

Chaeyoung shakes her head. “It’s not Momo. Well, it is-wait no it isn’t. It’s me.”

 

“Fix your speech,” Mina commands and Chaeyoung immediately straightens herself, exhaling heavily before calming herself down to speak. Chaeyoung hasn’t been this nervous in such a long time — the last instance being that interview for her university, where she was there for a few hours and where they decided if she was the right fit or not.

 

It feels like that time once again, where she’s being questioned relentlessly and where Mina is scrutinizing her every move, judging whether or not she should let Chaeyoung continue talking.

 

As strange at it is, it keeps Chaeyoung going. Her life hasn’t been this interesting in such a long time.

 

So Chaeyoung plants her feet, resolute and determined to get her point across.

 

“I have a confession to make.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to come out a few days ago, but if you don't know, I'm on vacation in Europe at the moment. Check my twitter (shameless plug I know). Well this chapter was written on subway stations, on the subway, castles, bars, and restaurants. Really any place where I could pull out my phone (I forgot museums). So here it is! (Also formatting might look weird. I didn't bring my laptop TT)

What to get for the woman who has everything? 

Chaeyoung wanders the Macy’s, her hands twiddling with each other and her back hunched. She looks odd, as if she isn’t supposed to be here, like she has some sort of sinister plan in her mind. Honestly, she doesn’t know why she’s here. Scratch that. She knows exactly why she’s here. Why did she actually go through with it?

Is it her being too nice again? She’s always been told she’s been too nice. She always tried to deny it, but Dahyun (who usually says it) would just coo and squeeze her cheeks and call her a big baby. Now mean people would snap at people who did that so Chaeyoung relents and just lives with the fact that yeah, she is too nice. What of it?

Anyway, Chaeyoung’s figured out that she isn’t too gifted in finding presents for other people. For herself, yeah. She usually just treats herself with a cheesecake or two, but she’s never given a present to somebody else. People understand why she can’t. So she asks herself this question repeatedly as she walks through the aisles of clothing, What to get for the woman who has everything?

//

“I-I lo-” Chaeyoung’s words gets stuck in her throat. “I got you a present,” she settles, cursing inwardly at her cowardice.

“Oh,” Mina whispers, low, as if she didn't expect this. She expected something...well… more, really. What sort of present would someone like Chaeyoung get for her?

“Here.” Chaeyoung reaches inside her pocket and thrusts the contents out. 

Oh. It's…

“Socks. You were cold when you were in my house. I don't have slippers, either,” Chaeyoung says, a nervous smile on her face. She doesn't understand the implication behind her words.

“Are-Are you saying I'm coming back?”

Chaeyoung’s eyes widen when she stutters, “I-I t-that's not what I meant. It's just-I mean if you wanted to. I-I wouldn't stop you. My apartment is nice, I think. Minus the air conditioning. You saw the bird house right?”

Mina nods, confused. “Yeah I saw.”

“Ha! Then you get it. People like that bird house. You must want to come by my house then.”

Huh. Mina understands the reasoning, but she thinks that bird house is fugly. No reason to ruin someone’s day though.

“Sure...I guess. Is that all you came here for?” Mina must've said it wrong because Chaeyoung deflates and her shoulders lock in place, tensing at the words. 

“Oh. No, I had-you-I'm—”

“Fix your speech,” Mina commands again. “You've just been bumbling around. I can't understand you.”

Chaeyoung sighs, having had Mina berate her twice already. She's not normally this skittish, but it's late at night and she's in front of someone she likes. When did she become a high school kid all over again?

“Momo’s downstairs. Dubu and Sana came along too. I was wondering if you wanted to...come. Come with us I mean. Home. Celebrate the holidays together, with us. Be with us.” It isn't pretty, but Chaeyoung’s sure she got the message across. Either way, she's said it. Sure it may not be what she really wanted to say, but this is the next best thing. Chaeyoung just wants to be close to her.

Chaeyoung doesn't expect Mina to say what she says.

“Okay.” 

Chaeyoung stares at her.

“I'll celebrate with you.”

//

Chaeyoung finds Sana and Dahyun sprawled out on one of the couches knocked out cold. Sana grasping one of Dahyun’s thighs like the pervert she is. Dahyun doesn't seem to mind it one bit. Momo is sweet-talking the receptionist, leaning over the counter as the receptionist leans closer too, faces so close an inch would make them kiss. Chaeyoung smirks. Who knew Momo had game?

“Momoring~” Mina sing-songs, which, to her dismay, not only serves to catch baffled looks from everyone, but also wake the pair sleeping on the couch. 

Chaeyoung tries to stifle her laugh, so she smiles to the side instead to mask her true feelings. Candy-like, sweet. That's what it sounded like. Chaeyoung would love to hear it again.

“Oh. Hey Mina,” Momo takes notice. The receptionist turns her body towards the pair and that's when Chaeyoung takes notice of the name tag.

Jihyo Park

Huh. Korean? Either everyone’s fucking Korean or everyone's fucking a Korean. 

If only Tzuyu was here…

“We’re going home. My house,” Chaeyoung informs. The pair from the couch make their way towards them. Mina and Chaeyoung meet them halfway, stopping right beside Momo and the receptionist Jihyo. “So as I was saying, we’re going home.”

“Going home already Ms. Myoui?” Jihyo gets their attention. 

Mina shoots her a pointed glare which softens when Jihyo explains herself. “You've worked through the night the past month. I didn't get to ask why you never returned a few nights back, however. I had to ask Ms. Yoo if I could close.”

“I was...out. Anyway, get back to work.”

Momo wags a finger in from of Mina’s face, earning a brow raised. 

“Don't. Talk to her like that. She's my friend and that means she’s yours too. Do you talk to your friends like that?”

“I don't have friends.”

“And don't you see the reason why?”

Mina purses her lips, huffing as she crosses her arms. “Get to the point.”

Momo lips turn up as she says, “And our friends celebrate the holidays together. In a home.”

Mina shoots a look towards Jihyo, whose own eyes are throwing daggers at the side of Momo’s face. Boss! Mina’s her boss for Christ’s sake! What is she doing?

Momo continues, “And...I like her. She asked me out to dinner tomorrow. Be nice.”

Then Jihyo’s face turns red and Momo takes her hand, making it even redder. Crimson. Jihyo wants to run away. The dumpster in the basement would do.

“We’re going home. If you want to come, come. If you don't, then nothing’ll have changed.”

Mina stares. She has pride. Large. Bloated. Unnecessary. Still, it's all she has. She is all she has. But now she has Momo, then Chaeyoung, then those two horny idiots going by the name of Sana and Dahyun, then Jihyo. Pride, as much as she wields it proudly, would have to shrink into nothingness. Friends, new and old, are with her now. No need for pride any longer.

“I want to come. Let me come.”

Momo smiles.

“Alright, come.”

//

Staying up that late, there is bound to be some tired bodies. Momo, at the slightest touch of the couch, falls unconscious. Jihyo chuckling as she sees Momo looking dead, snuggles as the small spoon in Momo’s arms. Sana and Dahyun disappears in an empty room. The last two, Mina and Chaeyoung find themselves sitting across each other in the dining room, reminiscent of the time they first met. 

“Is this what your holiday celebrations look like? Seems drab,” Mina teases.

Chaeyoung scoffs. “It's four a.m. Of course we’re dead.”

“Then why are you still awake? I'm used to being up at this time.”

“To talk to you…”

“Because I can't have a guest in my home not settled in,” Chaeyoung says instead. “So where do you want to sleep? The floor or my room? Sana and Dahyun already took the other room.” 

“Sleep with me.”

“What?”

“I said sleep with me.”

Malfunction. Error 404. Chaeyoung.exe not found. Blue screen. Blue screen. Mayday mayday. Houston we’ve got a problem. We got a small Korean bartender that got her circuits pulled out by a Japanese intruder. Requesting backup, over.

“W-What a-are you...rephras-what is happ-am I dre-”

“In your bed. You have clothes I can use? Your clothes I presume. Won't they be small on me? Oh well. A little skin wouldn't hurt.”

Heart rate dropping. We’re losing her doc! What do we do?!

My clothes...in my bed...sleeping with her…

“Let's also cuddle.”

Aaaaaand she's gone.

//

Mina couldn't help it. Teasing Chaeyoung had to be the funniest thing she's ever done in a while. After that whole fiasco in her office, the stuttering and the sudden appearance, Momo’s tipoff that Chaeyoung likes her seemed more and more plausible. She should do this more often. Not everyday does someone drop what they're doing, lose sleep just cause they wanted to see you. It's endearing, sweet. Chaeyoung is sweet.

“H-Here's your clothes.” Chaeyoung hands her some folded clothes. A white shirt and some pajama bottoms. 

They're in Chaeyoung’s room, one amused and the other in autopilot mode (the pilot passed out). 

“Thanks.” Mina takes the clothes before pointing towards the bathroom. “That way right? Or do you want me to change here?”

“No!” Chaeyoung throws her hands up defensively as she turns her head away. “You change in the bathroom.”

Giving a chuckle and a nod, Mina goes to the bathroom to change.

//

Sleep. She's not getting any. Maybe two or three when the exhaustion kicks in, but there's no way she's getting six, much less seven or eight. Even those hours are nigh impossible on normal days. 

It's a good thing her imagination hasn't faded ever since she was a kid.

Because the ceiling is such an interesting canvas! Dragons! Knights! A-And Kings and...Q-Queens...and Princesses…

Princesses…

Mina looks like a Princess. So elegant and refined. Her lips are pink and supple and wet…

Mina licks them when she sleeps. Distracted. Chaeyoung has forgotten all about the wonderful ceiling full of imagination. Because here, there's something real, something tangible, yet why does Mina look so...so…

“Unreal,” Chaeyoung whispers, her hand reaching out to touch but catching it right away. 

She wants to paint Mina, paint this scene presented to her. It's like the world gave her the gift she's always wanted. Money doesn't matter. Just Mina. Mina is all that matters in this moment, because the way Mina’s nose crinkles in her sleep is all that it takes for Chaeyoung to lose her breath.

Like. It's not enough to express how she feels right now. Likey? Sounds like a song she's heard before. Now love, love is too heavy, but Chaeyoung is strong and she’ll try to carry such weight upon her shoulders. 

She loves Mina. That's all it is.

//

(“You never know Chae. You might find somebody better than me,” Tzuyu says, licking her ice cream afterwards. She leaves Chaeyoung frowning, staring at the taller girl. “I might not be here forever. You might have to be alone till you find that one. The right one.”

“What are you talking about Tzu? I-I like you. A lot. How could-”

“See? There it is. Like. You like me. Maybe that's all I deserve.”

“Stop it.” Chaeyoung is fuming. “Don't-”

“Chae run!” Tzuyu grabs her hand as a bunch of druggies chase them out of the park.)

//

It's when Mina’s face contorts in her sleep that Chaeyoung panics. She's been staring at the girl for who knows now. Anything Mina does causes some sort of mini spasm inside of her. Having Mina in pain, anguish is enough for her to have her heart rate rising and her pupils dilating.

So, Chaeyoung being Chaeyoung, does what she can, with what she has, with what she owns.

Finding Mina’s hand in the dark, she takes hold of it.

And she’ll never let go until Mina relaxes.

//

Chaeyoung wakes to the smell of burnt bacon, burnt eggs, burnt toast, burnt everything. Then she hears the yelling and the sound of the screen door opening, followed by Dahyun’s wild voice screaming, “Get it out of here! Get that monstrosity out of here!”

Chaeyoung sighs. Sana and Dahyun are cooking again. There's a reason they always eat out.

A pat to her side and Chaeyoung finds it empty. Mina is gone. Unsurprised. Mina has a habit of running away. But Chaeyoung figures she knows should've expected it, a person doesn't change that quickly. But before she could swing the covers off herself and start the day anew, her bedroom door swings open.

Oh. My. God.

“I brought you breakfast,” Mina says. She holds the tray in her hand, a cup of orange juice with bacon and eggs and stuff Chaeyoung definitely did not buy from the grocery store this month. Oh. Mina bought them, for her, cooked them too, and they don't look burnt at all. It looks tasty, like some sort of Michelin star meal.

Having some sort of dejavú creeping up on her, she shudders, the goosebumps spreading like the plague across her skin. 

It takes Chaeyoung a second, or two. Then she finds herself and straightens.

“G’morning. I thought you left.”

“I bought groceries. Forgive me but I lent some to Dahyun and Sana and as you can smell, it didn't turn out so well.” Mina makes her way to the bed, setting the tray snug on Chaeyoung's lap. “Tell me what you think. I haven't cooked in a while.”

Chaeyoung takes her fork and has a good look at the meal. There's so much. Not even half of this does she cook for herself, because she'd probably be unable to eat it all. She won't be able to eat it all.

So she says the next best thing…

“Eat with me.”

“What?”

“I said eat with me.”

Mina swallows and she looks into Chaeyoung’s eyes, finding no hint of a joke, just pure seriousness. She's not going to get out of this is she? So Mina exhales before saying a curt, “Let me get a fork,” before turning away to the door.

Nuh uh.

Huh?

“Nuh uh.” Oh. Chaeyoung’s voice. Mina turns back, finding Chaeyoung beckoning her over. Mina finds herself unable to stop her legs from moving closer. When she gets there, Chaeyoung has already taken one of the hash browns and is hoisting it up. “Say ah~”

Mina wants to die.

Ah? What ah? The last time she was fed was when she was in her diapers shitting whenever she wanted. A grown woman like her getting fed? By someone like Chaeyoung no less. Her pride won't allow it. Her...pride...fuck.

“Ahhh.” Mina accepts the offer and eats the hash brown from Chaeyoung’s fork, munching on it quietly as Chaeyoung stares silently with a look in her eyes. Mina swallows when she sees that look in her eyes.

“How is it?” Chaeyoung asks. 

Mina clears her throat and she straightens herself, posture up.

“Good. It was good. Now eat why won't you?” Mina tries to sound harsh, like before. Yet it doesn't sound right. It sounds like teasing, like Mina became a softie overnight. Oh how the mighty have fallen. The Queen eats with the peasants! (Or princess. Which age you like better Chaeyoung guesses. You know…whatever floats your figurative boat.)

They alternate. Chaeyoung eats then Mina does. Mina doesn't take the fork. Chaeyoung doesn't give her the chance to, and Chaeyoung feeds her throughout the meal, down to the last piece of bacon.


	9. Chapter 9

Chaeyoung stares. Lipstick. Lips. Pink. Mina. Mina’s lips are pink with lipstick. Then her eyes wander to the hair. Brown. Ponies. What? Tail. Ponytail. Blue. Band. Mina’s hair is brown and tied into a ponytail with a blue band. Coupled with the lipstick, she looks stunning, even more so. Gosh, Chaeyoung’s thoughts are all jumbled up. It’s a whole mess.

 

That's Chaeyoung’s lipstick and her band.

 

Chaeyoung touches her own lips. Indirect kiss. Mina used her lipstick. My. God.

 

“Do I look good?” 

 

Chaeyoung swallows and nods.

 

“Yeah,” Chaeyoung says, seemingly out of breath. “Yeah, you do.”

 

Then Mina smiles and it feels like the world has given her another Christmas present. 

 

“You need to stop that,” Mina scolds and the air gets stiffer, as does Chaeyoung whose shoulders tense from the tone. 

 

Mina hadn't meant for it to sound like it did. It was supposed to sound playful, with a sort of teasing tone. Yet it sounded vitriolic, rough, as if you were wading through the forest in a Russian winter. Mistake. She used her business tone, the tone that she uses whenever one of her subordinates makes a mistake or whenever Jeongyeon manages to piss her off (which is almost every time they meet). 

 

But then Mina becomes soft and then Chaeyoung visibly relaxes.

 

“I'm sorry. I-I was trying to-” Mina sighs, scratching the back of her head. “You just keep looking at me with those eyes.”

 

“What eyes?”

 

“Like you're in love with me, or something.”

 

Chaeyoung looks down, smiling at her feet, which are twiddling and uneasy. She's never felt this way, not in her lifetime. She feels like a child, when things weren't so rough and the pastures were greener, when she didn't see the world as shades of gray but rather streaks of black and white. 

 

“Cause I am. You knew, didn't you?”

 

“I did.”

 

“Then why'd you ask?”

 

“Because I wanted to hear it for myself. And I did.”

 

Chaeyoung blushes before she says, “How bout’ you?”

 

“I-” Mina stops before a smirk comes to her. “I'll tell you later.”

 

“Unfair.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“That's unfair. I confessed and you're teasing me.”

 

Mina shakes her head as she takes a step forward and Chaeyoung takes a step back in response. “Why do you even like me? What made you like me? A few days ago you wanted nothing to do with me.”

 

Chaeyoung swallows. Then she looks and then it stops.

 

//

 

“It's her, isn't it?” Dahyun asks, leaning against the bar counter. Chatters apart from theirs can be heard, but Chaeyoung drowns them out with her own thoughts, raging and wailing around like a typhoon on crack.

 

“I don't know what you're talking about-on your tab? Alright.” Chaeyoung hands the man his drink, shooting a stink eye to Dahyun, who doesn't seem to be charged with a sense of urgency to actually work when there's so many people. 

 

“Mina. She reminds you of Tzuyu, doesn't she? That's why you like her. That's why you bought socks, or something. Tzuyu got cold feet too. I remember.”

 

Chaeyoung shakes her head as a nervous smile creeps upon her lips. She busies herself with taking upon Dahyun’s share of the work, the inquisitive girl shooting daggers at her.

 

“You-I-That's wrong. Not why I do. You think low of me.”

 

“Then what? I see so much of Tzuyu. They could practically be sisters at this point.”

 

“It's. Not. Her.” Chaeyoung hisses, slamming a shot glass on the counter, startling the customer in front. He quickly takes the shot glass and scurries away — scared of the bartender’s livid eyes.

 

“There's Tzuyu and there's Mina. They are different. End of story.”

 

“How?”

 

Chaeyoung pays Dahyun a glance, a tired one, one as if she really doesn't want to answer, because that'd be baring her heart, and she doesn't want to do that, not even to Dahyun. She's closed her heart off a long time ago, that is, until Mina.

 

“Mina is caring. Not that Tzuyu wasn't. It's just...Mina is different. Chaeyoung reaches into her pocket and pulls out a piece of paper, a small one, like one in a fortune cookie. On it, a string of numbers. 

 

“This is Jeongyeon. Her number to be exact. Slipped this in my pocket when I was at Mina’s place. Found it when I was changing.”

 

(“Is this Jeongyeon? Yoo Jeongyeon?” Chaeyoung presses the phone close to her ear. In the corner of her eye, she spots Mina still sleeping on her bed. 

 

Chaeyoung couldn't sleep. At most, she'd get four hours in but it's hopeless so she made the decision to call.

 

“Huh? Who-It's late. Way too late. What do you want?”

 

“It's Mina’s friend.”

 

Chaeyoung hears the rustle of the sheets from the other line. There's a voice, other than Jeongyeon’s. 

 

“Where are you going?”

 

“It's Mina’s friend Nabongs. Go back to sleep.”

 

“What? Mina has a-” A sigh. “Be quick.”

 

“Alright, love.”

 

Jeongyeon doesn't speak, most likely walking away from the bedroom, before she clears her throat and Chaeyoung listens with a sharp ear.

 

“I guess we’re doing this,” Jeongyeon sighs out.

 

“Doing what?”

 

There's a short silence, as if Jeongyeon is taken aback. Maybe she’s just finding her words, Chaeyoung muses. Then Jeongyeon continues.

 

“I think you know already. Mina isn't the nicest person.”

 

“She's callous, like she's always baring fangs at you,” Chaeyoung clarifies. “What of it?”

 

“It's just-It's exactly that. She is like that and the fact that she’d let you in at two in the morning is a telling sign in itself.”

 

“You were there at two in the morning,” Chaeyoung reasons back.

 

“I'm her boss. It's not like that.”

 

Chaeyoung sighs. Sometimes she thinks that people do these kinds of things, say things that don't matter, things, to her at least, that don't matter. And this late at night, Chaeyoung believes there's two things that people will say.

 

Things that don't matter and things that matter way too much. 

 

Had the subject not been about Mina, she would've assumed it's the former, but it is, and she's second guessing herself.

 

“What's your name?” Jeongyeon asks.

 

“Chaeyoung. Chaeyoung Son.”

 

Jeongyeon chuckles a little. “Sounds a bit foreign, doesn't it? I think Son Chaeyoung sounds better.”

 

Chaeyoung nods her head even though no one can see. “Yeah it's a pain.”

 

“Mina thinks the same. This naming thing. She likes it Myoui Mina. I think that's one of the few things I know about her.”

 

“What else do you know?”

 

“About Mina? Not much as I said. Well, there's these people she met in the Bronx the other day. She couldn't work much. It was on her mind. It was all on her mind.”

 

“Did she say names?”

 

“No, just that they were from the Bronx. Reminded her of the time she used to live there. I don't know how that must've felt, being that poor, but anything that gets Mina like that must've been a strong force. Something fierce.”

 

“It must've been,” Chaeyoung agrees, though she knows it's her at the frozen pond at the park. “Thanks for tell-”

 

“I'm not done yet,” Jeongyeon interrupts, and Chaeyoung presses the phone even harder against her ear, as if that would be effective (it's not). “I have a lot more to say.”

 

“Okay.” Then there's a pause; Jeongyeon’s thinking. It must be much, because Chaeyoung is without a word from the other girl for what seems like ages. Then it starts and her heart pounds.

 

“Mina is alone. I think you know that already. She comes in to work, does what she has to, but she's not like the others. She works and works and works till the others don't have much to worry about, because she takes the load off of others, like she wants to take on their burdens, or something like that. I know she says those mean things, like she doesn't care, but she cares. 

 

She just has a weird way of showing it.”

 

“It’s snowing and it’s cold and it’s stupid and I probably shouldn’t even care because the kebab place just shut down...And I’m here and I’m wondering if the stupid kebab cart would just magically pass by but you’re here with your stupid hot dog and I was wondering if I could eat with you but I couldn’t dare ask.” 

 

“Work for me, as my secretary. I think you'll be perfect.”

 

“Yeah,” Chaeyoung lowly says, “It does seem that way.” 

 

“You know she once gave the whole financial sector a free day off, said it was Yoo Jeongyeon’s treat, but I found her there in the morning still working off what needed to be done. I don't know much about Mina, and I don't know what she's done in her past, but something must've happened, like she's doing her penance.”

 

Chaeyoung takes it all in, her words stuck in her throat, lodged in there like a lozenge that she can't just swallow. She tries to speak, but it all seems unbelievable. Myoui Mina is so unbelievable. (Had it been a few days ago, Chaeyoung would've denied it all, written off such information).

 

“She doesn't speak much, only to me and a few others. The ones she has to. But she spoke to you and that counts for something. So tell me Son Chaeyoung, what do you want from Myoui Mina?”

 

“I want-”)

 

“-you to be with me,” Chaeyoung answers and though Mina knew, she's taken aback, her mouth open in shock. Chaeyoung takes a step forward, gaining lost ground that Mina took and Mina takes a step back in response. Chaeyoung takes it further. “I want to take you out on dates. Pick you up from work. I want to send you flowers. I want to hear your burdens and I want to take them from you, because having another person carry it with you is easier. No one deserves to be alone and I know I don't deserve you, but I'll try, if you want me to.”

 

“I-I don't know what to say.”

 

“Don't say anything just…” Chaeyoungs eyes flicker between Mina’s eyes and her lips. It's so clear. It's right there. 

 

“Just?”

 

“Kiss me.”

 

“What?”

 

“Just kiss me.”

 

“I-what I don't kno-”

 

“I've already said it twice. Don't make me say it again.”

 

Mina gulps and then she leans forward. Soon enough they meet, sparks flying, the breath sucked out from the both of them. Chaeyoung smiles into the kiss, delighted that this is happening, and then Mina smiles also, the same thought running through her mind. 

 

Maybe she doesn't have to carry it by herself after all. 

 

//

 

(“Hey. What are you doing?” 

 

“I could ask you the same. Where are you calling me from?”

 

“A payphone two blocks away from home. I couldn’t risk them seeing me talk to someone.”

 

“Do they know?”

 

“No. I don’t think we should tell them.”

 

“Yeah. I don’t want to tell them either. What do you think?”

 

“Hide it.”

 

“How? They’re with us almost every hour, calling or texting us. What if one of us slips?

 

“You can’t do that. If you do it’s all over.”

 

“I’m scared.”

 

“Yeah, I know. Me too. But we gotta stay strong. Keep it zipped up. Store it in your pocket and lock it forever.”

 

“I’ll try.”

 

“Good luck.”)

 

//

 

There’s a reason Chaeyoung is smiling, not just a business smile that she’s gotten used to using as a bartender but it’s wide, like her teeth and gums are all showing, like the kind when Momo shows up after a long time of not seeing her. It’s a reason that would be expected at the situation at hand, knowing the time of the year it is. 

 

It’s Sana’s birthday. The 29th of December. The date where the quad of friends always meet up to celebrate no matter what troubles they have. This year has a bit more bodies on the floor, namely the addition of Mina and Jihyo, but there’s Jeongyeon and Nayeon too (who by the way considered cleaning her ears at least five times over when she heard it was Mina’s friend). 

 

(“I'm going to my friend’s friend’s birthday party. You wanna come?”

 

“Whose friend?)

 

“Mina’s.”

 

“Mina has a friend?”

 

“Mina has a friend.”)

 

Dahyun is getting the cake, a simple one that they could afford at the bakery, while the rest are lounging around Chaeyoung’s apartment except for Chaeyoung herself.

 

Chaeyoung is in her room, a glass of wine in her hand (courtesy of Mina), looking at vinyls she’s collected over the years. The box is off in the corner, barely noticeable, and that’s how  
Chaeyoung likes it. It’s troubling every time someone takes notice of it, namely Sana, who leaps up and squeals when she sees the music, so she’s learned to hide it.

 

Mina, however, is much more mellow.

 

“Do you own a phonograph?” Mina asks, peering over Chaeyoung’s shoulder. She sees the record in Chaeyoung’s hand, an In Utero Nirvana record. “I’ve heard Nirvana once. I didn’t fancy it as much.”

 

“It was my father’s. He gave it to me as a gift, asking me to come for Christmas one year. I don’t go anymore. He’s insufferable and my mother always fights him about it. Family is like that you know? And no I don’t own a phonograph. I sold it for rent money.” Chaeyoung stands up, record and glass in her hand and turns around. “And I suggest you give them a listen again. You might find something you like. Not everything from a musician has to be what you ‘fancy’.”

 

Mina smirks. “Alright. I’ll give them a try,” is what she says before turning her head, spotting the poster on the wall. “That poster. It’s the only thing on your walls. Do you like them that much?”

 

“That’s another gift, from Momo this time. Said she didn’t really have a wall she could pin it to anymore so she gave it to me. Do you recognize it? She said it was on her wall when she lived with her parents.”

 

Mina looks closely, spotting the marking on the lower right corner of the poster. A small inscription saying “For Moguri. My bff”.

 

“I thought she threw it away,” Mina whispers, walking closer to the poster and touching it, touching a piece of her past. “What’s your favorite song?”

 

“Dumb.”

 

“That’s the song I listened to.”

 

“Oh? Why didn’t you like it?”

 

“The lyrics. The meaning of them. They were-” Mina swallows. “-what I was feeling back then. I hated it.”

 

Chaeyoung comes up from behind, the glass of wine and the record gone from her hands, and hugs her, resting her chin on the taller girl’s shoulder.

 

“Well I’m happy and hopefully you’re happy. Although, I wouldn’t count us out for being dumb either.”

 

Mina giggles and turns around, cupping Chaeyoung’s cheeks.

 

“I love you.”

 

“I love you too.”

 

//

 

Chaeyoung considers her friends to be extensions of herself, since they influence her in ways she never thought possible. That’s why she’s been told to choose them carefully. 

 

She chose Dahyun because there’s nothing more funny than Dahyun finding a bottle of whiskey in a cabinet and her chugging it in one go. There’s a lot more incidents, but a life without someone like Dahyun is like a life without adrenaline — boring.

 

She chose Sana because she’s a ball of sunshine who lights up her day with just a smile. Sana is a good person. A life without someone like Sana is like life without happiness — boring.

 

She chose Momo because while Momo hasn’t finished school yet and she’s living on scraps, Momo brings wisdom, gives her advice on all the things she’s unsure about. A life without someone like Momo is like life without direction — boring (although Chaeyoung could make a case for either).

 

With Mina, it’s all these things. She makes her filled with adrenaline with just a look or a touch. She makes her happy, smiling ear to ear. She gives her direction, wisdom pouring out with ease. She’s the complete package; it’s no wonder to her that she’d be the person she wanted to be with. 

 

Sana agrees.

 

“I went to school with Mina if you didn’t know already. She was always with Momo, like two peas in a pod. You rarely saw Momo without Mina. They were inseparable.”

 

“Wait, you knew her? What about-”

 

“Momo? Yeah, she knows. We just didn’t think it was important to say. She doesn’t like to talk about high school much.”

 

Chaeyoung nods, agreeing. In all the years Chaeyoung has known Momo, there wasn't a word about high school or life before that. She said it was best not to know. Now she does and Chaeyoung doesn’t blame her for not divulging any of it.

 

“Mina. How was she? Back then. I meant back then.”

 

“Normal, like an average introverted high schooler. Didn’t talk much, but did much. Momo always brought her to the parties, but she always left early. I never got to talk to her much. She had Momo and I had my own group of friends.”

 

Chaeyoung juts her lips out, satisfied. Her phone buzzes from her pocket and she pulls it out to see a text from Dahyun. 

 

“Dahyun needs my help downstairs. Her key won’t work on the door. I’ll talk to you later alright?”

 

Sana nods and Chaeyoung turns away, that is, until Sana calls out to her, a small smile on her lips.

 

“You take care of Mina. Back when I knew her, she was constantly being pestered by the principal about this scholarship and how she needed to fly out to Boston for an interview. Yet she didn’t have the money to do that. I saw her cry Chae, behind the bleachers. I helped her out, but I still think she’s still stressed with other things. She’s smiling a lot more than when I knew her and I want you to keep doing what you’re doing. She’s glass and she’s fragile.”

 

Chaeyoung nods, in awe of Sana’s care for Mina even though they barely know each other. But there it is, that’s Sana for you. She’s good, too good. Flaws don’t exist in her system. . 

 

“I will. Don’t worry.”

 

//

 

Chaeyoung doesn’t come up when Dahyun does. She doesn’t come up at all. Hours have passed since they last saw her, and Dahyun isn’t budging from her seat as she stares off into nothing, maybe looking at the coffee table or the clock on the wall waiting for time to pass. When Dahyun appeared through the door, cake in hand and all, she was pale, paler than she already is. 

 

All around her, eyes of concerned nature stare. They wait, wait for Dahyun to speak, because they’ve never seen Dahyun this serious, so steely and cold. It’s starting to scare them, but they have to endure it because pushing Dahyun might make it worse. She might curl up like an armadillo and refuse to talk. Sana has half the mind to knock her girlfriend upside the head, but she’s worried also.

 

But finally, she speaks.

 

“Happy birthday.”

 

Sana frowns and she sidles up to Dahyun, a glower on her face. She rests her hand on Dahyun’s shoulder, and Dahyun relaxes from the touch. Sana always does this and Dahyun can’t help but live with it. Sana knows what she’s doing.

 

“Dahyunnie. We’ve been waiting. Can you tell us what happened? We’re worried.”

 

Dahyun shakes her head before she looks up, those eyes full of pain and fear.

 

Fear. She’s scared. Sana recognizes those eyes. She’s studied them for years, always looking into them, trying to gauge what the other is feeling so she could change how she acts. And when Dahyun is scared, she’s here, because what else could she do but be there. Sana is good.

 

She is good.

 

Sana looks up to the others, mainly Mina who’s on the verge of tears, her lip quivering and her hand shaking. Sana understands what she’s feeling knowing the girl. That’s another person she cares about gone. Damn it. Chaeyoung promised. She promised! 

 

“I’m sorry but can we do this at another time? We need space.”

 

They nod and start to pack up their things. Sana takes the initiative to pull Mina aside before shooting a look to Momo, as if saying “We’ll fix this. You go do you for now.” Momo nods back before putting on her coat and joining the others to exit the apartment.

 

Sana pays her attention back to Mina, who’s at ninety-nine percent. She’s this close and Sana’s reminded of the old girl’s self back when she was in high school crying behind the bleachers. It’s soft and it’s totally like the Mina’s she knows, not the Mina that everyone else does. 

 

“We’ll find her okay? She’s probably just out doing errands or something. You know how she is.”

 

“But Dahyun…”

 

“Dahyun’s like this sometimes. I should’ve told you about it,” Sana lies. She doesn’t know what came over her, but she lies. Maybe it’s because she couldn’t stand to see Mina red in the eyes, bags under them, without a hint of a breath coming from her lips from sobbing. Sana wants to avoid that outcome as much as possible. If lying is the way to do it, then so be it. “Momo’s probably waiting outside with the others. You join her okay?”

 

Mina nods, as if she’s a little child being pampered by her mother, before she heads out of the apartment with her coat in hand. Sana is left staring at that door that Mina left from, eyes laced with an indiscernible emotion. She breaks out of her trance and heads to the couch once again, sitting next to Dahyun. She stays silent, trying to get comfortable with the mood.  
But Dahyun breaks the silence.

 

And Sana wants to run. 

 

“How do you know Mina?”

 

Sana is good and she’ll keep telling herself that until it’s true. 

 

// 

 

("You need money don't you? I got something to help."

 

"What is it?"

 

"Meet me by the police station.")


	10. Epilogue

 

“She’s gone,” Dahyun says, setting a can of sprite on the bench. Chaeyoung is on the opposite side, hands in her jacket pocket as she looks out to the passerbyers. 

 

“Figures. Can’t believe she kept it from us. We’ve been together for years; you’d think she’d confess to something like that.”

 

Dahyun sighs, running a hand through her hair. Her eyes have bags and she looks gaunt and tired. Her eyes are red too, probably from the crying. Chaeyoung heard the girl cry for who knows how long before she collapsed from exhaustion.

 

“She practically killed our best friend making that shit. Do you think Mina dealt it to her?”

 

“Probably,” Chaeyoung answers, relenting to the fact that yeah, she must’ve dealt it to Tzuyu’s father. Mina couldn’t have known, but her secret’s been out already and she’s been forgiven. She confessed on her own and owned up to it. WIth Mina, it’s okay. “But she couldn’t have known it was Tzuyu’s father. She didn’t owe me anything back then. She didn’t owe Tzuyu anything. But with Sana you know? She’s probably ruined thousands of other lives, not just our own. I think that’s the fucked up thing here.”

 

“Sana’s scared right now. I could feel it. You know when you’ve been with someone for that long you feel when they’re in trouble.”

 

Chaeyoung nods; she understands. When she was with Tzuyu, she knew when the girl was in pain or something like that, some six sense that she developed over the years. 

 

Dahyun stares at Chaeyoung before she frowns, sadness overwhelming her once more. Everytime she thinks of Sana, there’s this feeling that wells up in her stomach, of bad omens and trouble. It’s not the goodness and the sunshine anymore. Sana isn’t that good of a person it seems.

 

“I love her still Chae. Is that wrong?”

 

Chaeyoung shakes her head and takes initiative to pull Dahyun in her embrace. The other girl buries her head into her shoulder and immediately when she does, Chaeyoung feels the wet of the tears seeping into her shirt.

 

Chaeyoung knows this pain, knowing the girl you like did some horrible things. However this is Sana and before Sana was Dahyun’s lover, she was their friend, their best friend that they shared. They went through so much already. 

 

Meanwhile, Chaeyoung’s barely known Mina; there hasn’t been an awful lot of memories to choose from. But with Sana, there’s hundreds, tons of them to choose from inside her mind. Now everytime she chooses a memory with Sana in it, it’s like there’s this sort of mask Sana’s wearing. She feels fake, as if she’s a spy disguised as a diplomat in a foreign country. 

 

Hopefully Sana comes back so they could sort out this mess.

 

God why did Tzuyu’s father come yesterday.

 

“I think this year’s the first in years we won’t spend New Year’s together. She won’t be the first and last person I see.”

 

Chaeyoung rubs Dahyun’s back, which is heaving from the sobbing.

 

“You still got me. You and me versus the world. Just like how it used to be. But we’ll find her. I know we will.”

 

Dahyun nods into Chaeyoung’s shoulder and she hugs her even tighter. It takes a while but Dahyun gets her bearing backs and pulls away. She takes a moment to just stare at Chaeyoung before she smiles weakly and Chaeyoung will take any smile she can get. That means Dahyun is healing, no matter how small it is.

 

“Come on. We got a housewarming party to go to.”


End file.
